Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 11 March 2021
8. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if urgent consideration will be given to the issues outlined in correspondence (details supplied) in relation to insurance costs for a sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13819/21]
View answerI recognise that the cost of insurance, particularly the impact of high claim pay outs, is a major issue for consumers and businesses. I welcome the adoption by the Judicial Council on the 6th March of the new Personal Injuries Guidelines. The Minister for Justice intends that the new Guidelines will apply to all cases that have not yet been assessed by PIAB. This approach will ensure that the law is robust and the Guidelines can take effect as soon as possible as we seek to reduce the cost of insurance.
While I appreciate the points raised in the correspondence received with this PQ, the new Guidelines clearly represent a shift in the manner in which general damages are awarded and in the level of those damages. Awards across all ranges and in all courts should be less than heretofore, with the exception of awards for the most serious types of injury and catastrophic injury. In addition, the Guidelines will apply to all cases that have not yet been assessed by the Personal Injuries Assessment Board. This should facilitate an increased level of consistency in awards, more frequent early resolution of claims, and ultimately a reduction in award levels.
The Report of the Law Reform Commission on the Capping of Personal Injury levels considered that a scheme under which general damages are capped and all awards for lesser injuries are indexed to the cap would be constitutional. However, it concluded that it would be appropriate that the Personal Injuries Guidelines be given some time to be applied in practice. As per Action 15 of the ‘Action Plan for Insurance Reform’, Minister McEntee will make a report on the implementation and initial impact of the Guidelines by the end of 2021.
I would point out that there is no silver bullet to deal with insurance costs. That is why Government developed the ‘Action Plan for Insurance Reform’ with 66 actions to drive reform across Government. While the Guidelines are important, they represent only one part of our plan. Other important actions include:
- Examination of the Occupiers Liability Act 1995 to increase protections for consumers, businesses, sporting clubs and community groups in relation to duty of care.
- Reducing insurance fraud including placing perjury on a statutory footing, making the offence easier to prosecute.
- Enhancing the role of the Personal Injuries Assessment Board, for which my Department will be initiating a public consultation before the end of this month and I would welcome contributions from members.
The Action Plan shows that the Government is serious about insurance reform and I am confident that through the actions outlined in the Plan we can bring about substantive change for consumers and businesses, which will make a real difference to people’s lives and livelihoods.
