Michael D'Arcy (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The cost of insurance working group, a cross-departmental group, has a meeting every month and we raise all these issues. On average, motor insurance premia are down by 16% year on year. There has been an increase of 57% from the low point, but that was when there was a price war and the outcome of price wars never tends to be good. We are not going to see decreases of 57%. The employer liability and public liability reports were done, they went to Cabinet and they have been published. A lot of work has been done, some of it following the recommendations of the motor insurance report of 12 months earlier. The Personal Injuries Commission has been established and Mr. Justice Kearns has produced its first report. He is working on a second part, which will be very telling as it will cross-reference payments in the Irish system with those in our nearest neighbour, and maybe some other jurisdictions. It will compare what people get from similar claims in the UK to what they get in Ireland.

One line sticks out from the employer liability and public liability reports, which asserts that one cannot have low premia and high awards. We have high awards and that is what we are trying to deal with. We are trying to improve the insurance sector as a whole for everybody.

I understand that in some areas, if there is only a single pub or shop, the insurance premiums can sometimes double or triple if a claim is made and that it can have such an impact that the shop or pub will close. There are a number of aspects to this. The general data protection regulation is to start in May. A recommendation on employers' land public liability insurance will be that, if somebody has a claim, that he or she must present it within 28 days, the period for which somebody can hold information. If there is a video camera recording an event or potential accident, somebody has to present the claim to the individual within the period, otherwise the data have to be deleted. A number of good things are happening. If the Deputy wants, I will be quite happy to come with my insurance team to present the information.