Gerry Horkan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his opening statement. I appreciate that he has said he does not know from where the figures have come but I want to draw attention to the Alliance for Insurance Reform survey that was only circulated to us earlier. There were 494 responses, with the largest sector being motor and transport, followed by hospitality, leisure, retail, not-for-profits, healthcare, arts and entertainment, with "other" accounting for 6%. There were not that many questions but question No. 3 was answered by all 494 respondents. It asked how much insurance costs have increased since 2015, and the average answer was 204%. There is a question on whether an insurer had increased excesses or added new exclusions, and 28% of respondents having increased excesses, with 11% seeing new exclusions, 23% seeing both and 36% seeing neither. There is a question as to what three phrases best describe the impact that increasing insurance premia has on an organisation. From the possible responses, 48.5% of respondents indicated it threatened the future of the organisation, 45% stated it inhibited the ability to grow and 32% indicated it was preventing the organisation from providing certain services while 25% stated it made jobs less secure. Respondents were also asked if the Government is doing enough to address the insurance problem. Of the 494 respondents, two said "Yes", 23 did not know and 469, or almost 95%, said "No". That is not a personal attack on the Minister of State.

That is a flavour of the issue. These are people who took the time to respond to the survey and they are involved with the industry. We have had people in here who run play centres, events festivals, playgrounds, local authorities, pubs and restaurants. I do not doubt that every time the Minister of State goes to a public function, people are talking about insurance. I am the chair of a school board and I know such boards that have seen their premiums go from €27,000 to €34,000 per year with no new claims or incidents. Once a group package agreement is over, the charge is being increased by significant amounts. Insurance is necessary for most people and they cannot afford to be without it. The Minister of State was a member of this committee when we did our work on motor insurance, and 92% of people are not claiming. This means 8% of people have caused the premium rises. The legal and insurance industries may be making now but we had figures indicating that at a time they certainly were not making money.

There is a significant frustration and I would be happy to progress the Judicial Council Bill 2017 as speedily as possible in the Seanad next Thursday. Report and Final Stages will be taken and the legislation could be passed very quickly. There may be 30 Government amendments. I am certainly happy to progress it as fast as possible. We were ready to take it in the Seanad as soon as it was offered and no other Bill delayed it. We were happy to process it as soon as it was scheduled for us. The Minister of State's opening statement lists all the good work being done, and the Bill is a part of that.

I do not wish to portray all insurance companies or legal people as evil. I have family members who are involved with solicitors, etc. The awards available to people for what seems to most people to be minor incidents are an attraction. I have said it previously in the Seanad that if people are caught trying to rob a bank, they would probably go to jail and end up with a sanction but people who make a false insurance claim, by and large, end up with no sanction if they get caught. They can come back next week to try again. We are bringing in the Garda Commissioner, which is helpful, as well as insurance company representatives. It is morally and socially unacceptable to make exaggerated claims and stage accidents. There is a cost. There was a social welfare campaign with the line, "Welfare cheats cheat us all", and insurance fraud is costing every one of us. Most of us with cars will not make a claim but premiums continue to increase. I acknowledge that I experience a small drop following a large increase over a couple of years in my premium.

I welcome the work done by the Minister of State but when does he think restaurants, pubs and charity events will benefit from meaningful reductions? We know this is about reducing the volume and value of claims. With motor insurance, it is also about having fewer accidents and crashes. When does the Minister of State believe there will be meaningful results? These businesses are closing and are under pressure. He knows this as he is doing that work. Can he give them some hope?