Michael D'Arcy (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Supreme Court delivered its judgment on 25 May 2017 and overturned the previous decisions of the High Court and the Court of Appeal that the Motor Insurers' Bureau of Ireland is liable in respect of third party motor insurance claims made against the policyholders of Setanta Insurance. The consequence of this is that the Insurance Compensation Fund, ICF, has been deemed responsible for the payment of such third party claims.

As the judgment has been delivered, it is now possible to begin the process of making payments in accordance with the provisions of the Insurance Act 1964, as amended. Payments can only be made from the ICF with the approval of the High Court, and only if it appears to the High Court that it is unlikely that the claim can be met otherwise than from the ICF. If satisfied, the High Court can order payments out of the ICF up to 65%, or €825,000, whichever is the lesser, due to relevant third party claimants.

The liquidator has confirmed to the Department that, as of 20 June 2017, the number of open claims is 1,578. The Office of the Accountant of the Courts of Justice and the State Claims Agency are working with the liquidator to progress the making of payments to these claimants.

In this regard, there are currently 324 claims ready for settlement and have been validated by the State Claims Agency. The process for bringing these claims to the High Court for approval has commenced but a date has yet to be agreed.

Over and above the 65% ICF, insurance compensation fund, payment, it is expected that a proportion of the balance of money due to third party claimants will be met from the proceeds of the distribution of Setanta’s assets on completion of the liquidation process. However, it is not possible to say definitively at this stage what proportion of the claims this will amount to. Current indications are that this is unlikely to be sufficient to cover the entire 35% gap, however.

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