Minister Eoghan Murphy Publishes Plan to Improve Motor Insurance Provision

DUBLIN, Jan. 10 -- The Ireland Department of Finance issued the following news release:

The Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan TD and Minister of State for Financial Services, Eoghan Murphy TD have presented the Cost of Insurance Working Group's Report on the Cost of Motor Insurance to Government this afternoon, and the Government has approved the report.

The Report covers six main themes as follows:

* Protecting the consumer

* Improving data availability

* Improving the personal injuries claims environment

* Reducing the costs in the claims process

* Reducing insurance fraud and uninsured driving

* Promoting road safety and reducing collisions

In addressing these six themes, the Report makes 33 recommendations with 71 associated actions to be carried out. The recommendations and actions are detailed in an action plan contained in the report with agreed timelines for implementation. The recommendations include actions to:

* address the lack of transparency in the claims area, through the establishment of a national claims information database which will be located in the Central Bank;

* provide enhanced guidance in how to determine compensation for personal injuries claims, through the establishment of a Personal Injuries Commission;

* address the increasing level of uninsured driving, through the establishment of a fully functioning database which will allow the Gardai to check insurance compliance by the use of technology such as Automatic Number Plate Recognition; and

* address the issue of suspected fraud, through the establishment of a database that will be funded by industry but held by an independent body and that will take into account data protection concerns.

The Minister of State Eoghan Murphy highlighted that: "In taking action and implementing the Report's recommendations, this will lead to greater stability in the pricing of motor insurance and will help prevent the volatility that we have seen in the market in the past (both up and down). It should also better facilitate potential new entrants to the market."

"There is no silver bullet to reduce the cost of insurance, insofar as no one recommendation will solve the problem on its own. However, cooperation and commitment between all bodies and individuals with a stake in a stable and accessible insurance market can deliver fairer premiums for consumers without unnecessary delay."

The Working Group, chaired by Minister Eoghan Murphy will continue to meet in 2017 as the project enters its implementation phase.

Background Note to Editors:

Insurance is a critical financial service providing policyholders with protection against financial losses from adverse events. The non-life insurance sector is an important sector, both in its own right and in terms of its relationship as a facilitator of activity, both commercial and non-commercial, in other sectors of the economy. Pricing in the non-life insurance sector has been subject to a lot of volatility in recent years, from a point where some premiums appeared to be priced at an unsustainably low level to the more recent experience of large increases, particularly since 2014. Central Statistics Office data shows that insurance prices have increased by 47 per cent since January 2011, while motor insurance prices have increased by 51 per cent over the same period.

It is against this background that the Cost of Insurance Working Group was established, chaired by the Minister of State Eoghan Murphy T.D.. This Working Group was tasked with examining the factors contributing to the increasing cost of insurance and identifying what measures can be introduced to help reduce the cost of insurance for consumers and businesses, taking account of the requirement for the need to ensure a financially stable insurance sector.

The initial focus of the Working Group has been the issue of rising motor insurance premiums. In this context, the Working Group brought together all the relevant Departments and Offices and has met twelve times in plenary format. Four sub-groups were also established to look at particular issues in more detail, including to understand the motor insurance market, the need for improved data availability, the cost of claims and other public policy issues. In addition to the above, the Working Group embarked on an extensive consultation process, and met with various stakeholders.

The Working Group has now finalised and agreed the attached Report on the Cost of Motor Insurance. The Report attempts to be forward looking and makes 33 recommendations across six areas, with 71 associated actions to be carried out in agreed timeframes set out in an action plan in the report.

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