Mr. Dermott Jewell:

I will make a number of brief comments. I suggest the creation of a once-off fund, as is needed currently to deal with this problem. In response to one of the Deputy's questions on how many cases are involved, I will not lie as I do not know the answer. The problem is that there is no significant evidence or detail of exactly how many people are at a loss but I know, as I mentioned earlier, that from the small number of approximately 300 people who are officially listed with the Garda Síochána, the damage runs in the region of €1.25 million to €1.5 million. Those people need to access some fund.

One of the problems is that there are always terms and conditions. The burden of proof needs to be reversed in this situation. The burden of proof must be placed on the petrol distribution companies and the garages so that they must prove that they did not sell contaminated petrol. Most importantly, if we are to look at an insurance product, as a consumer I would never have thought I needed to ask an insurance company whether I would be covered in the event of fuel contamination. It would never have entered my mind that it might happen. That is the problem.