Who we are - Unespa : Unespa

UNESPA is the association that represents insurance in Spain. It is a member of the Spanish Confederation of Employers’ Organizations (CEOE) and Insurance Europe, among other institutions.

What is UNESPA?

UNESPA is the Spanish Association of Insurers. The association was founded in 1977 and represents approximately 200 insurers that together cover almost all the insurance business in Spain. These undertakings have a turnover of 62,000 million euros every year, or in other words, almost 5.1% of Spanish gross domestic product (GDP). Insurance is an industry that resolves tens of thousands of unforeseen events every day. These mishaps range from small setbacks, such as a flat tyre or leak; to big challenges, such as performing a complex surgical operation or prudently managing someone’s life savings for retirement.

To do this work, insurance companies directly employ over 54,000 people, which is almost equally divided between men and women. Added to these workers are the indirect jobs existing in the field of insurance distribution. The provision of care services of all kinds makes insurance a first-rate service platform to society and, as such, it is an important creator of jobs and catalyst for the economy.

What is its purpose?

UNESPA is the voice of insurance. The association expresses the position of the insurance sector on matters that concern society. It represents its associates before all kinds of institutions and bodies, both national and international, and transmits the perspective of insurance to them. The association aims to be present in all major social debates regarding the insurance activity and to constantly transfer the values and progress reported by insurance.

In the end, the purpose of UNESPA is for Spanish society to know of the existence of insurance. So it knows that insurance provides the necessary certainty for anyone starting a project and for society to progress. In short, that insurance is an essential ally to move towards a fairer and more sustainable economy.

Spanish Insurance, at a glance.

This factsheet abridges what is the insurance business like in Spain.

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Who is behind the Association?

UNESPA unites around 200 insurance companies that cover almost the entire national insurance market. The association supports the interests of the insurance industry and does so led by a team of professionals with extensive experience..

Pilar González de Frutos

President

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Pilar González de Frutos (Navares de Ayuso, Segovia 1956). A graduate in Law from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM), her connections with the insurance industry began in 1980, when she started working as a civil servant insurance inspector.

Her entire professional career has been in the area of insurance. Among other positions, she has been director of operations for the Insurance Compensation Consortium (1988-1997), director general of the Spanish supervisor of insurers and Pension Funds (1997-2002) and is currently chair of UNESPA. She has also been chair of FIDES (the Inter-American Federation of Insurers) from 2015 to 2017.

María Aránzazu del Valle Schaan

Secretary general

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María Aránzazu (Mirenchu) del Valle Schaan (Madrid, 1963) has been secretary general of UNESPA since 1996. She holds a degree in Law from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM) and a master’s in Community Law from the Institute d’Études Européennes at the Université Libre de Bruxelles (Brussels. Belgium).

Her professional career began at the General Directorate of Territorial Policy of the European Commission of the former European Economic Community (EEC), now the European Union. After passing through EU institutions she joined the Spanish Association of Insurers as director of international relations in 1988. She was appointed general secretary of UNESPA in 1996 -a position she still holds and which she combines with responsibilities at various Spanish and multinational institutions. She has been chair of the Insurance and Reinsurance Stakeholders Groups (IRSG) of the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) between 2016 and 2018.

Manuel Mascaraque Montagut

General Insurance Area Director

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Manuel Mascaraque Montagut (Madrid. 1961) has been director of UNESPA’s General Insurance Area since 2004. He is responsible for coordinating the committees overseeing different types of general insurance (motor, multi-risk, liability and transport, and reinsurance).

He holds a degree in Economics and Business Administration, is an insurance actuary, has a master’s in Business Administration (MBA) from the Instituto de Empresa, and also holds two other postgraduate degrees in insurance. Almost all his entire professional career has been linked to the sector. Between 1999 and 2004, he held management positions in several insurance companies.

Luis Miguel Ávalos Muñoz

Personal Insurance and Taxation Director

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Luis Miguel Ávalos Muñoz (Madrid, 1960) has been head of UNESPA’s Personal Insurance and Taxation Area since 1999. He is responsible for coordinating the committees for insurance lines of business that relate to the protection of persons (life, health and funeral expenses), as well as the taxation committee.

After graduating in Law from Complutense University of Madrid in 1982, Ávalos completed his education with other legislative and business-related degrees. He holds a diploma in Tax Law (1987) and a master’s in Business Advice (1988). He was technical secretary and later director of the Spanish Confederation of Mutualities (CNEPS) between 1984 and 1999.

How are we organised?

The work at UNESPA is organised through technical committees, functional committees, territorial unions and working groups. Throughout the year, almost a thousand professionals from different insurance companies take part in these bodies. Their work makes it possible for insurance to provide better service to clients. Or in other words, to society as a whole.

Presidency

First executive of UNESPA. The president is of a professional nature and is elected by the General Assembly for four years.

General Assembly

All the associated entities form part of this body and have the right to vote.

Board of Directors

Governing body between assembly meetings. Formed by 33 insurance companies.

Executive Committee

Responsible for the management of the association. Comprises 18 insurance companies.

Audit and Control Committee

Supervises the financial information of the association and internal control systems. Three representatives from insurance undertakings comprise this committee.

Presidential Committee

Analyses all those matters that may affect several branches of insurance. It comprises the presidents of the Technical Committees, as well as of the Reinsurance and Mutual Societies Function Committees.