John Brady
Ceist:87. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Finance his plans to tackle rising motor insurance costs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30578/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThursday, 29 June 2017
Ceisteanna (87)
Freagraí scríofa
As the Deputy is aware, my predecessor as Minister for Finance,Michael Noonan T.D., established the Cost of Insurance Working Group in 2016, as part of a Departmental review of policy in the insurance sector, in consultation with the Central Bank and other Departments and Agencies. The Working Group, which is now chaired by Minister of State Michael D’Arcy T.D., is examining the factors contributing to the increasing cost of insurance and identifying what short, medium and long-term measures can be introduced to help reduce the cost of insurance for consumers and businesses.
The initial focus of the Working Group was the issue of rising motor insurance premiums and its Report on the Cost of Motor Insurance was published in January 2017. The Report makes 33 recommendations with 71 associated actions to be carried out in agreed timeframes, which are clearly set out in an Action Plan. 45 of these action points are due to be implemented by the end of this year with the remainder scheduled for completion before the conclusion of 2018.
There is a commitment within the Report that the Working Group will prepare quarterly updates on its progress and the first such update was published in early May. This update provides details on how the implementation of the recommendations is progressing, with a particular focus on the ten action points which were due for completion during the first quarter.
Both the Report and the first quarterly update are available on the Department of Finance’s website.
My Department will publish the second quarterly update in the coming weeks. This update will again show the progress to date on the overall implementation of the recommendations, with a particular focus on the 17 action points which are due for completion in the second quarter of 2017.
It is envisaged that the implementation of all the recommendations cumulatively, with the appropriate levels of commitment and cooperation from all relevant stakeholders, will achieve the objective of delivering fairer premiums for consumers without unnecessary delay.
It may also be of interest to the Deputy that, in parallel with the above, the Working Group in its second phase is currently examining the employer liability and public liability insurance sectors.