Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome our guests. I suggested to the committee that we have this hearing because I believe passionately that many of the 75,000 policyholders with Setanta Insurance have been let down. They were insured with a company which they believed to be regulated here but which, it turns out, was regulated in Malta and went into liquidation. They were let down because they had seen the treatment of insured policyholders of other insurance companies in the past and the same treatment was not afforded to them. Furthermore, in the case of those who have been involved in accidents and have claims, there is still no clarity in respect of where they stand and how these claims will be processed.

I have a series of questions and will try to be as brief as possible. If the deputations could be as brief with their answers, I would appreciate it.

I received a response to a question I had tabled to the Minister for Finance on 30 April. It states the Motor Insurers Bureau of Ireland indicated that it intended to accept all third party claims in connection with Setanta Insurance policies. We dealt with the matter and now know that is not the case and that the bureau is seeking legal clarification. We should receive that clarification on Friday. My question is for Mr.Casey. The Minister made that statement in the Dáil. Did the MIBI indicate to the Department or the Minister that it intended to accept all third party claims in connection with Setanta Insurance policies?