General principles of supervision

1.  Supervision shall be based on a prospective and risk-based approach. It shall include the verification on a continuous basis of the proper operation of the insurance or reinsurance business and of the compliance with supervisory provisions by insurance and reinsurance undertakings.

2.  Supervision of insurance and reinsurance undertakings shall comprise an appropriate combination of off-site activities and on-site inspections.

3.  Member States shall ensure that the requirements laid down in this Directive are applied in a manner which is proportionate to the nature, scale and complexity of the risks inherent in the business of an insurance or reinsurance undertaking.

4.  The delegated acts and the regulatory and implementing technical standards adopted by the Commission shall take into account the principle of proportionality, thus ensuring the proportionate application of this Directive, in particular in relation to small insurance undertakings.

The draft regulatory technical standards submitted by EIOPA in accordance with Article 10 to 14 of Regulation (EU) No 1094/2010, the draft implementing technical standards submitted in accordance with Article 15 thereof and the guidelines and recommendations issued in accordance with Article 16 thereof, shall take into account the principle of proportionality, thus ensuring the proportionate application of this Directive, in particular in relation to small insurance undertakings.