New measures to guarantee customers receive the same level of consumer protection wherever in the EU they buy insurance have come into force.

The Insurance Distribution Directive sets out the information that must be provided to customers before they sign up to an insurance contract. It also lays down rules for insurance-based investment products.

Conservative MEPs helped secure changes to the original proposals to ensure  member states can impose tougher rules if they wish.

Delegation leader  Ashley Fox, MEP for South West England and Gibraltar, said:  "We have been able to strip out many of the over prescriptive, one-size-fits-all requirements, instead focusing on the information that can really benefit the consumer. This is the most sensible way to go about legislating.

"This Directive will now enhance consumer protection, increase competition and create a more level playing field between insurance and investment products."

Economic and Monetary Affairs Spokesman Kay Swinburne, MEP for Wales, said the Directive would go a long way towards protecting consumers in the insurance market across the EU.

"It will ensure that the same protections are available to individuals when they by an insurance product in the UK as elsewhere in Europe, no matter where the insurance broker is based," she stated.

Member states have two years to incorporate the new rules into national law.