The Alliance for Insurance Reform has called for the government to progress duty of care and Personal Injuries Assessment Board (PIAB) reform following the publication of the latest update from the Cabinet Committee sub-group on Insurance Reform.
The update claims that c.90% of actions in the government plan have been completed or are ongoing, including the implementation of Personal Injuries Guidelines, stricter laws on perjury, and the establishment of the Insurance Fraud Coordination Office.
The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment said in an update that reform of occupiers' liability/duty of care legislation and reform of PIAB would be completed this year.
The Action Plan for Insurance Reform was published in December 2020 and sets out 66 actions for reform to bring
Peter Boland, director of the Alliance, welcomed ongoing progress in delivering on the government's Action Plan for Insurance Reform but said there was work to be done.
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Premiums continue to rise despite reductions in awards for personal injuries, and the Office to Promote Competition in the Insurance Market has struggled to grow underwriting capacity in the state.
"Over the last five years there have been serious reductions in the total number of personal injury claims, and more recently in the average personal injury awards and the numbers of claimants heading to litigation," Boland said.
"But since the implementation of the Judicial Guidelines in April 2021, liability renewals have actually increased by 16%.
"Liability insurers are pocketing the benefits of the reforms and it is up to government to get serious with them to ensure that the benefits are passed on in premium reductions to SMEs, voluntary and community groups, charities and sports and cultural organisations struggling with the costs of staying open.”
Eoin McCambridge, director of the Alliance, added: “Insurers are taking liability policyholders and the government for a ride and damaging the credibility of the government’s insurance reform programme.
"From a policyholder perspective, it appears that all the gains being delivered are being used to improve underwriter profitability and bankroll the takeover frenzy in the insurance broker sector. Government must hold insurers to account to so that the gains from the Judicial Guidelines and other reforms are passed on immediately and in full.
"While government frequently tells us that they cannot dictate premium prices, government has enormous soft power over the insurance sector, a sector which needs our government to allow it to function profitably."
Enterprise minister Leo Varadkar trumpeted the government's progress in implementing the Action Plan.
"The new Personal Injuries Guidelines are being used, new offices to promote competition and crack down on fraud have been established, and we’ve strengthened the laws on perjury," he said.
"Legislation to reform PIAB is before the Oireachtas and government has approved proposals to amend the law on occupiers’ liability."
He added: "While we have seen some evidence of improvement of availability of insurance, we have only seen premiums decrease for motorists to date. It is also expected there will be a lag time between implementing the reforms and people seeing the benefits.
"I want the subgroup on Insurance Reform to continue its work next year, overseen by the dedicated Cabinet Committee sub-group. It will continue and will actively review developments in the sector, monitor price changes and actively engage with stakeholders to resolve issues in the market.”
Minister for Justice Helen McEntee said her department had reviewed the Occupiers' Liability Act and produced proposals that she believes will "strike the right balance between ensuring that businesses, community groups and organisers of events fulfil their duty of care responsibilities, while also acknowledging the importance of personal responsibility of visitors, recreational users and trespassers”.
Peter Boland said the government "must hold incumbent insurers to account on delivering the benefit of reforms to liability policyholders; and the Office to Promote Competition in the Insurance Market must start to attract meaningful additional underwriting capacity into the market to apply pressure on the incumbents who have had it their own way for too long.
"The challenges involved in staying open, for Irish SMEs and voluntary organisations, have never been greater in our nation’s recent history. Of all these challenges, the insurance crisis is the one closest to being solved by government. Insurers must act in good faith on the progress already made.”
