Ciarán Lynch (Cork South Central, Labour)
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This needs to be summarised and nailed down. The witnesses are saying 98% of people are getting flood insurance. The EU report indicated that Ireland is one of the safest countries for the insurance business and that we present a far lower risk than any other country in Europe. Therefore, the insurance industry here should be performing at a high level. However, if the model it pursues is to continue, it will not be 98% in the future, and at the centre of this is geocoding. The insurance industry is not taking into account the specifics as Deputy Catherine Murphy has pointed out, but is considering the generalities of a location. I am aware of a house in Cathedral Road in Cork - not in my constituency - which is at a height of approximately 500 ft. and cannot get flood insurance. If Cathedral Road floods, nobody will be living in Ireland. If I live in an area that has been geo-coded, why is there no mechanism for me to get my property out of that geocoding? The insurance industry is not taking a specific examination of the property but is applying a general rule. That is a summary of Deputy Catherine Murphy's contribution and the witnesses need to respond to it.