Mr. Michael Horan:

Insurance companies differentiate between risks based on their statistics. They charge a premium according to the riskiness of the person taking out insurance. Young drivers historically have had more claims and their claims cost more. I know the Deputy is referring to that particular report but there is quite a lot that is not in the system which relates to incurred claims that are not reported and various other things. I think they were referring to year one development. In other words we have not seen the claims develop right through. It normally takes about five years for all injury claims to wash through, from notification to final settlement.

Young drivers tend to pay more for the reason I have said. Insurance companies compete with each other for business across the market in the segments they are interested in. In respect of older drivers, the point is the same: it is differentiation between risk based on the actuarial statistics that individual insurers have. That is legitimate as long as the actuarial statistics they have justify the position. It is based on the riskiness of the people according to the statistics the individual insurers hold.