Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 8 September 2020
268. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Finance the steps he is taking to address the increasingly high cost of motor insurance, in particular for professional lorry and truck drivers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21792/20]
Amharc ar fhreagraI would like to begin by assuring the Deputy that insurance reform is a key priority for this Government and this is reflected in the Programme for Government. It lays out commitments that are aimed at addressing consumer and business concerns on the cost of insurance. These commitments include increasing transparency; addressing legal reforms in certain areas of civil law; addressing fraud; enhancing and reforming the role of the Personal Injuries Assessment Board, and increasing competition. I believe that the reforms outlined within the Programme will also have a positive impact on motor insurance for professional lorry and truck drivers, whose issues both I and Minister of State Fleming are aware of, from extensive consultations which took place with both the Irish Road Haulage Association and Freight Transport Association Ireland as part of the Cost of Insurance Working Group’s (CIWG) first Report on motor insurance.
The Deputy will recall that the first CIWG Report, published in January 2017, made 33 recommendations which aimed to improve the environment for all motor insurance customers, including lorry and truck drivers. While most of these recommendations have been implemented, it is the Government’s intention to ensure that any outstanding recommendations are completed as soon as possible.
In this regard, I believe that a necessary step that needs to be addressed as a matter of priority is to bring the levels of personal injury damages awarded in this country more in line with those awarded in other jurisdictions. The establishment of the Judicial Council last December is very important in this regard, and it is expected that the Personal Injuries Guidelines Committee will submit draft Guidelines to the Executive Board of the Judicial Council by 28 October. I believe that these guidelines could play a role in the lowering of award levels and a more consistent application of making awards in courts and thus ultimately benefiting lorry and truck drivers as well as other professional drivers.
In conclusion, making progress will be a cross-Departmental approach and we will build and expand upon previous work done by the Cost of Insurance Working Group. Both Minister of State Fleming and I will be cooperating with relevant Ministerial colleagues. In that regard, it is my intention, along with An Tánaiste, to bring proposals to Government shortly that will set out the modalities for implementing the Programme for Government commitments and identifying areas for early action.
