Mr. Jim Waldron:

Obviously, insurance is the biggest cost most taxi drivers have. If they have a tip, they can expect their policy to double or sometimes treble. It is a concern but the NTA has shown no leadership here. It tells us it has been in touch with the insurance companies but only yesterday a driver contacted me whose car has been suspended by agreement with the NTA. He has seven days now to reinstate his licence. He said he does not want to go back to work at the moment and would rather stay off for another couple of months for health reasons. He has been told he cannot extend his suspension. What does that mean practically? It means he now must install or replace full taxi insurance which could probably cost him €200 per month, or more, on what he is already paying now because the NTA will not allow him to continue his suspension. The NTA has not negotiated prices on behalf of taxi drivers and has not negotiated at all with insurance companies to allow drivers to step down. The simplest thing for it to do is to say to all drivers that if they want to step their insurance down to a social and domestic policy for three months, we could all save money. However, it would not allow us because the regulation states if one has a taxi one must have full taxi insurance at all times. Why did the NTA not say that because of Covid-19, at this particular time it will allow a person to drop his or her insurance down to social and domestic, stick the roof sign in the boot and use it when he or she needs go to the hospitals or anywhere else?