Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)

I move amendment No. 5:

In page 10, subsection (5), line 40, after "effective" to insert the following:

"and likely to come to the attention of the recipient of the notice within a reasonable time".

This section allows the Minister to serve notice of termination of indemnity by e-mail. All of us know e-mails go astray and people say they did not receive them. It seems to be an informal method of notifying people of termination. The implications of termination are momentous for the operator concerned. There should be a more formal mechanism for doing that.

The intention of my amendment is to ensure that the notice is not just sent, but that there is some recognition of the need for the person to have received it. I propose the insertion of my amendment and it is a reasonable proposal. Sending an e-mail telling someone his or her insurance cover is terminated seems a casual way of doing it and there should be a mechanism to ensure it has come to the attention of the recipient.

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