John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Yes. I am not drawing a conclusion; I am just taking it as what is known within the industry - that that is what is driving an awful lot of cases from the PIAB to court. When one gets to court, one has not only the solicitor's fees but one also has the barrister's fees and the time taken up in the courts. In addition, one has a greater settlement impacting on the insurance industry because that is the way it is in the courts. I am looking at this from the viewpoint of what can be done now or in the medium term to resolve some of this.

How much of the action is actually within our own remit in terms of legislation? A review of the PIAB legislation, in the context of how it was intended to work and how it is actually working, could be undertaken. As we discuss this matter, there is a significant upward movement in insurance costs. If we, as legislators, do not intervene, in terms of the PIAB, it will just shoot way beyond the mark. My concern is that the PIAB is not working in the way it was intended. When it first started in 2004, there was a significant change in settlements, which had a positive impact. That legislation needs to be reviewed, however, because of the issue of payments to solicitors. We need to take immediate action which would lead to a positive outcome in terms of the work the Minister of State is undertaking.

As we deal with this, I expect it is not so much that we might kick the can down the road. However, if one of the players in this - that is, the Government - does not take a role in it through legislation, we may very well see further exits from the market. We may see a further consolidation within the market and, if so, we will definitely see insurance premiums going up. Zenith went out of the market this week, so all of that is going on. I am suggesting that we should examine that immediately.

I have another concern about insurance, the NCT and licensing in a number of cases that I have examined where premiums were being renewed. For example, one young woman was being quoted €2,300 which was up almost 100% on the previous year. However, when she went a different route, it was reduced to €1,300 by another company on the basis that she would do a test. Look at the difference in the premiums. Is there now not enough confidence in our NCT and licensing that an insurance company would take that route?

The haulage industry has been hit and that impacts on the economy. Some haulage operators have seen insurance increases of 50% last year and 50% again this year. It is just not sustainable.

When they engage with individual members of the committee, they are looking for explanations and immediate action because all the costs associated with the haulage and transport industry will get passed down the line. At the end of the day, the consumer will take the brunt of all of this. It is inexplicable that young and old people travelling to work are now being forced to look at paying enormous insurance costs. A taxi driver told me the other day that his insurance costs have increased by €50 per week. The Minister of State mentioned that an interim report will be ready in October. I respect the work he is doing. It is obvious from his contribution to today's meeting that he is on top of his brief. The Injuries Board legislation will delay this process. Maybe it would be better to front-load it and look at it now. That is the reality of the claims.