Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I would like to say a couple of things in response to that. While the Government cannot interfere in the pricing of premiums, it cannot consider it acceptable for Insurance Ireland or anyone in the industry to look to set a signal around pricing because that would feed into the type of price-fixing or price-signalling behaviour about which people have raised fears. We have to understand that the insurance industry cannot co-operate by providing certain details about how it determines premiums or how it weighs a particular risk into a policy because that might be perceived as untoward behaviour. As we know, the taxi industry has suffered significantly as a result of the increase in premiums. Driving a taxi is a riskier form of driving from the point of view of the insurance companies because of the greater frequency of trips being done. If a taxi is successful, it is constantly in motion on the roads. As it is carrying passengers for most of that time, it has other liabilities that the average driver would not have. That would be reflected in the pricing of premiums.

A meeting of the body responsible for representing small business vehicles in the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport was due for completion in the first quarter of this year, but was delayed. That meeting, which has now taken place, marks the beginning of the progress that is needed in this area to get a better understanding of what can be done to make the situation better for taxi drivers and other people who use small vehicles for business functions. It is hoped that the general trend towards stabilisation in motor insurance premiums that we have seen over the past five months will lead to lower premiums, which would be of benefit to the taxi industry.

It is to be hoped that lower premiums will be of benefit to the taxi industry. I can absolutely ask Insurance Ireland to provide a better, more detailed and rigorous breakdown for the taxi industry to explain why it has been weighted with such heavy premiums.