Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 26 November 2015
226. Deputy Arthur Spring asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his views on preventing insurance companies from raising significantly the price of car insurance when an existing customer renews a policy. [42234/15]
View answerMy responsibilities, as Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, with respect to motor insurance, are limited to the requirement under the Road Traffic Acts relating to compulsory insurance for drivers of mechanically propelled vehicles. This is the only legal vires that I have in relation to motor insurance. To that end, I also have responsibility for the current Agreement made with the Motor Insurance Bureau of Ireland (MIBI). That Agreement sets out the rights given to persons who sustain loss and/or injuries in a road traffic collision caused by an uninsured or untraced motorist. The MIBI is funded by all insurance companies underwriting motor insurance in Ireland who must, by law, be members of MIBI and contribute to funding for claims in proportion to their market share.
I understand that the issues surrounding the increasing costs of insurance in this country are not unique to motor insurance. The Central Bank, who took over responsibility on 1 May 2003 under the auspices of the Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority for the regulation of and prudential supervision of insurance companies in Ireland, is best placed in terms of monitoring the costs of insurance, including motor insurance. However, I will continue to work with colleagues across the various Departments who have responsibility in this area, including the Department of Finance, to try and identify the exact causes of motor insurance inflation at this time and whether there are measures to be taken by Government on the matter.
