Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

If I can go back to the point the Chairman made at the start of the meeting, we have had other people before the committee referring to the insurance companies in Ireland operating as a cartel. I would have some concerns, given the examples they provided to us, and perhaps the witnesses could clarify those for the committee.

The first example given to us was of the person who gets a refusal from one insurance company and must notify that refusal to every other company. A person who gets a letter stating that renewal costs €300 may telephone around to get a cheaper quotation but if any of the insurance companies say "No" because the house is located on a flood plain, or for whatever reason, that person must then report the refusal to the first insurer, whereupon the premium skyrockets. That situation was mentioned.

Another element raised was that a person who has made an insurance claim cannot move to another insurance company for five years, even though he or she may have been 20 or 30 years with the company. There is also an element of price-fixing for specific areas, a pattern that becomes very clear when people telephone around to ask about prices. There is the spread of risk, which I heard mentioned on one occasion, meaning the allocation of customers within a risk area. Are the delegates aware of anybody operating in that manner?