Vol. 524 No. 1
17 Mr. Ring asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the measures she plans to put in place to deal with the escalating public liability costs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21639/00]
There has been extensive examination of the factors contributing to the relatively high level of insurance premiums in the area of public liability. This examination has focussed on a number of the key cost elements, including the levels of personal injury compensation and the costs associated with settling compensation claims. Concurrent with this examination, efforts are being made to identify measures, which both individually and cumulatively could have a moderating effect on public liability insurance costs.
The 1996 Deloitte & Touche Report on the Economic Evaluation of Insurance Costs found that the main contributory factors to rising premium costs were the high legal costs component of small claim settlements, the faster rate of medical cost inflation and the high level of general damages awards, relative to special damages in smaller claims.
Following consideration by Government of the Deloitte & Touche report, a special working group was set up to advise on the establishment of a personal injuries tribunal and to examine issues surrounding alternative systems of personal injury compensation in operation in other jurisdictions.
I am currently in the process of examining the recommendations contained in the special working group's second and final report on a personal injuries tribunal.
Apart from Government initiatives, greater attention to safety in the workplace can further reduce insurance costs. Accordingly, I launched the voluntary code of practice, adopted by the initiative on workplace safety group, a group representing the key players in the area of accident prevention and claims mitigation.
