Frank O'Rourke (Kildare North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I want to use this as an opportunity to again raise the huge issue of motor insurance for individuals and companies. The difficulty is that while this is an issue that has been raised for some time and has been spoken about at length in this Chamber over the last 12 or 14 months, we are not seeing any positive impact happening on the ground. Apart from premiums being reduced, they are not even stabilising. As we speak, they are still increasing. The Minister of State is probably aware of that himself. Most Deputies see this issue at their clinic on a daily or weekly basis. I certainly see it. I see it raised by two groups of people. One group is the private individuals trying to insure their cars. The second group is the business people in the haulage or fleet businesses who are having serious ongoing problems.

As we speak, premiums are still increasing by 30% and 40%. That was never acceptable and is certainly no longer acceptable now. It has been happening since about 2014. We must reach a stage at which measures are implemented and put in place to stop this happening. Rather than going into the issues of what has caused this and why it is happening, I believe we now need to stay focused on delivering a result and a solution and ensuring that premiums no longer escalate or increase but stabilise and return to the acceptable level they should be at to allow people to operate. What is the Minister of State, his Department and the Government doing to ensure that the 33 recommendations proposed by the Oireachtas committee are being implemented in a way to bring about and deliver results? As I said, that is not happening as we speak.

We may need to look at opening up the market for other European companies to come to Ireland and quote for insurance policies to help put manners on the current insurance companies that currently operate in the market. They are all operating through a mechanism by which the difference in their quotes is no more than €20, €30 or €40. That is not acceptable. I remember being cautioned when I attended the Committee for Public Accounts and raised a concern by saying that the companies are operating in a cartel-type manner. However, people can be forgiven for thinking like that because the increases are completely unacceptable and unsustainable. People's circumstances are not changing in any way, yet they are still seeing their premiums increase by maybe €300 or €400, which equates to 30% or 40%.

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It cannot be sustained. What will happen is those people will end up not driving at all or will perhaps be forced to do something terribly wrong by driving without insurance. For elderly people it will lead to further isolation. People are already very stretched and adding this unacceptable level of premium on to their policy is completely overstretching them to the point of breaking. That is the issue that has to be addressed.

A haulage business in Kildare, which employs 29 people, contacted me yesterday because the cost of its policy has increased by 40%. The person who contacted me is considering whether he will renew it, scale down his business or close. It would have a massive negative impact on the local and national economy. We know what the issues and recommendations are. The question now is what will be done to bring reductions in motor insurance across all spectrums so people see results, which is not happening.

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