Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am pleased to have an opportunity to speak on the motion. I have raised the issue of insurance many times in this Chamber. Small and medium local businesses and community and voluntary groups in my constituency of Cork South-West are crippled by constantly increasing insurance premiums, whether for property, vehicle or public liability insurance. Small business owners, self-employed persons and entrepreneurs keep the country on its feet, employing 970,000 people or 44% of the total workforce. Rural towns depend on local businesses, small pubs, post offices and Garda stations, yet these continue to decline in number because of consistent increases in rates and insurance costs. I know of garage owners, publicans, car owners and farmers who cannot pay their insurance premiums. Many are taking a chance and operating without insurance.

Only a couple of weeks ago, representatives of the hotel industry informed a committee meeting that insurance premiums for their members had increased by tens of thousands of euro through no fault of their own. Nightclub owners are being put out of business and rural towns are dying as a result of the unsustainable cost of doing business.

I support the motion and hope the cost of insurance working group's report will be implemented without delay. Businesses are closing daily and it is high time the Government did something to address the problem.

Insurance companies should be legally obliged to notify their customers of an expected increase in premiums prior to the renewal date. This would give them ample time to shop around or reallocate finances to cover the costs of the increase, rather than forcing them to close at the last minute or continue without insurance, as occurs in some cases. Time and again, Opposition motions, including a recent motion from the Rural Independent Group, have been introduced pleading with the Government to introduce some form of regulation for the insurance industry. The Minister of State set out a number of reasons for the high cost of insurance, including outcomes of court cases. The bottom line is that insurance bills are not reducing. We can talk about the issue until the cows come home but there is no benefit in proposing motions if we do not take action to resolve the problem. Is the Government listening and working to ensure the insurance industry sits up and listens to people who are suffering on the ground?

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