Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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Will the Minister provide the timeline for the implementation of each of the 14 recommendations made by the Personal Injuries Commission regarding personal injury awards?

Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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Deputy Kelleher has, in Deputy Butler, a good substitute in place for this afternoon's priority questions. I am very aware of the serious impacts on businesses and consumers of high insurance costs. It is important that consumers and businesses can obtain insurance cover at a reasonable and fair price.

The cost of insurance working group, chaired by my colleague, the Minister of State with responsibility for financial services and insurance, Deputy D'Arcy, and associated subgroups have been continuing to meet regularly to ensure the focus remains fixed upon the timely implementation of all the recommendations of the report on the cost of motor insurance and the report on the cost of employer and public liability insurance. The work of the cost of insurance working group is complemented by the work of the Personal Injuries Commission. The first report of the Personal Injuries Commission was published in December 2017 and made four recommendations, of which two are ongoing. One recommendation is partially complete and the final recommendation, relating to the book of quantum, has been superseded by the Personal Injuries Commission's recommendation that a judicial council, when established, be requested by the Minister for Justice and Equality to compile judicial guidelines for appropriate general damages for various types of personal injury.

The second and final report made a further ten recommendations. While these are not timebound, I expect that they will be implemented as soon as possible by the relevant bodies. Following publication of this report, the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, wrote to relevant colleagues in the Government and other organisations seeking co-operation in advancing the implementation of the recommendations relevant to them. Progress on implementing the recommendations is reported on through the cost of insurance working group progress reports. Four of the recommendations relate directly to recommendations in the two cost of insurance working group reports. Of the remaining six, as at the end of 2018, one is complete and the remaining five recommendations, including two relating to the development of judicial guidelines, were under consideration by relevant organisations.

The Personal Injuries Assessment Board (Amendment) Act 2019 came into effect on 3 April 2019 with the aim of strengthening the board in terms of operational issues to ensure greater compliance with the Personal Injuries Assessment Board process. This measure forms part of the Government’s response to facilitate cost savings in the claims environment.

The cumulative effects of the implementation of all the recommendations I have outlined, namely, the two reports of the Personal Injuries Commission, the reports of the cost of insurance working group and the measures contained in the Personal Injuries Assessment Board (Amendment) Act 2019, should bring greater consistency and predictability to awards, which is really important, and faster resolution of claims and ultimately, a reduction in insurance premiums. This will benefit consumers, businesses and society as a whole.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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Small businesses up and down the country have been crippled by massive increases in insurance costs. Pubs, bars, farms and marts have all seen their insurance premiums rise by thousands of euro in recent years. Among the reasons for the increases in premiums advanced to us at the committee were the increasing levels of awards. The Personal Injuries Commission confirmed that the level of damages for soft tissue whiplash injuries in Ireland is 4.4 times higher than in England and Wales. In addition, the level of fraudulent, false or exaggerated claims was highlighted as a major concern by a large number of stakeholders.

Several witnesses told the committee that in the current system there is little disincentive to make fraudulent, false or exaggerated claims.

I accept the Minister of State referred to the first four recommendations. However, regarding the other ten recommendations which are not timebound, will he agree that it would be more effective if a timescale for implementation was put on them?

Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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I agree with the Deputy on the awards made in certain cases. The Government is committed to ensure we get these measures put in place. As I stated already, it is about the cumulative effect of what we have been putting into place. The Personal Injuries Assessment Board (Amendment) Act 2019 is important legislation as it encourages people to settle awards out of court. That will mean reduced costs and fewer high awards. As my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy D’Arcy, has said, there is no silver bullet in this matter. The cumulative effect of the 14 recommendations, however, will be important, together with the recommendations from the Personal Injuries Commission report. It wants to include the judicial council and the awards of the Court of Appeal. In many cases, the awards have been halved by the Court of Appeal. All these factors have to be taken into consideration.

The Deputy has pointed out how high insurance costs are in Ireland compared to the UK and how soft tissue injury awards are 4.4 times higher here than for similar injuries in England and Wales.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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We can suggest many measures to tackle increasing insurance costs and insurance fraud. Without follow-up action, however, we will not see the benefits of these implementations. It is unacceptable that we are still without a dedicated Garda unit specifically tasked with fighting insurance fraud. Setting up such a unit would be an important development.

Last week it was reported that senior members of the Judiciary have called for proposals for a working group to be set up comprising judges, officials from the Department of Justice and Equality and the Personal Injuries Assessment Board to revise guidelines for awards levels for less serious injuries such as whiplash.

Has the Minister of State had any engagement with the Personal Injuries Assessment Board and the Minister for Justice and Equality on this proposed work?

Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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The Minister for Justice and Equality is working on this. We have published guidelines on the reporting of fraudulent insurance claims to the Garda Síochána.

The combination of what we have done over the past several years will bear fruition shortly. The Deputy referred to small businesses and she did a report on that for the enterprise committee. It is important to ensure that the measures put into place work out.

The European Commission carried out a report on the Irish motor insurance industry in 2017. Today, it announced that it decided to carry out an in-depth investigation as a matter of priority. As it is the subject of a formal investigation by the Commission, we do not want to comment on it or prejudge what is going on with the insurance industry in Ireland. We are determined to get to the bottom of this to ensure we can get cheaper insurance, not just for motorists but for businesses for which the Deputy has a concern.