Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 30 November 2023

Committee on Public Petitions

Reform of Insurance for Thatched Heritage Buildings: Discussion (Resumed)

Mr. Michael Curtin:

Looking into the future on that, one thing we welcome is the Department of housing's acknowledgement around the pilot and getting engineers out to implement the guidance. From an insurer's point of view, our perspective is that managing risk is key. We have seen the higher incidences of fire in Ireland versus the UK. However, the implementation of the guidance might see insurers take a more sympathetic view to what is going on in the market at that stage. That may help. It will take time to get the pilot scheme on that up and running but the more that is done and the more communication there is between the Department, ourselves and our members, that might help alleviate the situation into the future.