Ms Moyagh Murdock:

Where we have seen cases come through, I believe one of the biggest problems is the slow pace of cases coming through the system. I have not seen any court cases underpin the new judicial guidelines. What I have seen is a swathe of appeals and cases being declined. We have heard the PIAB say its acceptance levels have gone from 50% down to 37%. Our experience from the members of Insurance Ireland shows that there are actually a tiny number of cases being accepted either directly or through the PIAB, which gives me grave concern that a wait-and-see approach is being taken by some legal advisers to claimants. That has a risk of undermining what the new guidelines set out to achieve. The Deputy mentioned four appeals that have now been set up where cases were declined in the PIAB, went to the courts and the judges awarded much higher award levels. That is not going to be good for reducing the risk and certainty we are seeking from the new guidelines and it is a concern.