Linda Nelson Murray (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the opportunity to raise this matter. Although the Minister of State, Deputy Troy, could not be here, I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Feighan, for coming to the House.

I was thinking about this whole insurance reform thing. People would know me as being an advocate for reform and would ask me how I was getting on because they had not seen a difference in their premiums. I always reassure people of the significant work already done on insurance reform, such as the personal injury guidelines, the Injuries Resolution Board and the development of the National Claims Information Database, NCID, and that is thanks to the past two Governments and Members of both Houses.

I also welcome the new action plan for insurance reform. It says:

Greater transparency is fundamental to delivering a fairer and more affordable insurance market.... This Action Plan commits to expanding transparency further, ensuring that policyholders understand how premiums are calculated, and that insurers operate in an environment of accountability.

That sounds fabulous. I welcome the proposal for a transparency code for motor insurance. The fact that this is one of the early actions - it is due to be delivered by the end of this year - shows that the Government understands how important it is that people can see what is driving their premiums. Greater transparency on insurance premiums could lead to a more competitive market, allowing consumers to better understand the factors that influence pricing. The results could be informed customers, increased competition, accountability, the identification of inefficiencies, and consumer advocacy. Overall, increased transparency could empower consumers and foster a healthier, more competitive insurance market, ultimately leading to reduced costs. Would that not be great?

The reason I have tabled this matter, though, is the current experience of motorists and small businesses. The most recent NCID report and what we all hear in our constituencies tell the same story: motor insurance premiums are rising again. Let us stop telling people that they are down since 2016 because they are actually back up. Motorists, families, tradespeople and community organisations are all being squeezed. People are asking a very reasonable question, that being, why their premiums are still going up after all the reforms. The transparency code has real potential to help answer that question. My concern is simply to ensure that we design this code in a way that genuinely delivers for policyholders.For this policy to truly work I believe we need clarity in a small number of key areas before the code is finalised. First, we need to know the purpose of the transparency code. Why are we doing it? Is it there to help consumers understand how their premiums are calculated or is it also intended to help ensure that savings from reforms are passed to policyholders? What is the primary objective of the code - transparency alone or transparency in the service of lower and fairer premiums?

Second, it must be meaningful. That means information insurers provide under the code should not be limited to generic statements about market conditions, claims, inflation and blah, blah, blah. It should give policyholders a simple breakdown of the main elements underpinning their premiums, for example: the claims cost; their no claims discount; reinsurance; operating and legal costs; commissions to all parties, whether that be the broker, the underwriter, the insurer or the reinsurer; an indiction of the profit element at line of business level; Government taxes; the level of excess that is selected; and the individual risk assessment. Another thing is that those paying their premium monthly instead of all in go actually pay more. Put all of that down. It should also explain in plain language the main reasons for changes since the previous year, including where reforms or other developments have reduced costs, not only where costs have gone up.

Third, transparency needs to be standardised and verifiable. I am aware officials from the Department of Finance, the Central Bank and the industry are already working together on the design of the code. That collaboration is welcome but for the code to be useful I believe work should deliver a format in plain language so that explanations from different insurers are easy to read for everybody, no matter what age they are. I also think it is really important that public representatives and organisations representing consumers have an opportunity to input into the code and they have not had that so far. The action plan speaks about the Department working with the industry to develop the code and I do welcome that. However, it is not yet clear whether the end result will be like a voluntary industry code or a binding requirement backed by regulation or by the Central Bank's supervisory powers.

Finally, it is important we do something so that the transparency code does not become a way to show policyholders why they are paying more. That would be an awful result of this work. I sit on the enterprise committee and over the past few months we have had representatives from Retail Excellence, RGDATA, the Irish Hotels Federation, a chamber of commerce and the Vintner's Federation of Ireland all saying the costs of insurance are still way too high and there is not enough competition in the market. I look forward to working constructively with the Minister and colleagues across this House as the code is finalised.

Nicole Ryan (Sinn Fein)
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Before we move to the Minister of State I would like to welcome guests of Senator Eileen Flynn. They and their teachers are most welcome to the Gallery. As is the long-standing tradition, they will have no homework tonight and we hope they enjoy their day at Leinster House.

Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Senator for raising this important issue. I am pleased to address it on behalf of the Minister of State at the Department of Finance with special responsibility for financial services, credit unions and insurance, Deputy Troy, and to give an update on the progress being made under the new action plan for insurance reform. I am sure Senator Nelson Murray will be very aware already of the update I am giving her because she has been a passionate advocate for insurance reform since long before she came into this august Parliament. Also, there is the fact she has raised the issue in every forum possible. I thank her for highlighting this very important issue.

Both the Minister of State, Deputy Troy, and this Government regard insurance reform as a key priority and are determined to take the necessary steps to reduce the cost burden on households, motorists, businesses, and community organisations across the country. Through previous reforms, Government has implemented fundamental changes, including: the rebalancing of the duty of care, which adjusted liability expectations and reduced excessive claims; the reform of the Injuries Resolution Board, giving it a stronger mandate as an alternative to costly litigation; the introduction of the personal injuries guidelines, creating greater consistency and predictability in awards; and enhancements to the national claims information database, transforming the availability of data about costs, premiums, and settlements.

Despite progress on insurance costs in recent years, an inflationary global climate has led to certain costs creeping up again. Greater transparency, affordability and availability of insurance is fundamental to restoring trust and fairness in the insurance market. The action plan for insurance reform, published in July 2025, will guide the direction of insurance reform for the coming years, building on progress to date but also addressing the ongoing frustrations that consumers and businesses still experience. The Senator herself said that, after all, motorists' costs are still rising and that is quite frustrating. The action plan has 26 actions being led across a number of Departments, ten of which are priority actions. Of the ten priority actions, one has been completed - that of a benchmarking report on personal injuries awards - and the remaining nine actions are progressing well and are currently on track to be delivered within their respective timeframes.

One of the key areas we need to make an impact is transparency. Work has commenced on a transparency code for the insurance industry. The code, when developed, will require insurers to provide simple, understandable explanations of how premiums are formed and what broader factors influence pricing, and ensure customers can receive additional individual information upon request. A working group comprised of industry representatives, the Department of Finance and the Central Bank has been formed to progress this important initiative, and it has met on numerous occasions to work on a draft code. It is my expectation that the code will be finalised by the end of the year. The Senator outlined as well she felt there should be public representatives on that forum and I think that is quite true. Sometimes we set up these groups and they do not take into consideration all of the stakeholders and all of their views, so I will certainly bring that back to the Minister of State.

Another key area is legal reform and addressing the cost of litigated claims. Data from the NCID has shown that the Injuries Resolution Board is the fastest and most cost-effective method of resolving personal injury claims, delivering similar awards for claimants in less than half the time of litigation, with significantly less legal cost. Amending the Judicial Council Act 2019 to make reviews of the personal injuries guidelines more comprehensive and transparent and strengthening the role of the Injuries Resolution Board are key actions in the new plan. Resolving cases outside of court reduces claim costs and settlement times, which should reduce premiums, benefiting all parties.

Linda Nelson Murray (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming in today but I am going to express my absolute disappointment with the answer. We have two pages of an answer and there is just one paragraph that mentions there will be a transparency code by the end of the year. I know it is not due to the Minister of State, Deputy Feighan, but I really would have liked a more detailed answer. The response states that there is "a working group comprised of industry representatives, the Department of Finance, and the Central Bank" so we can see there are not stakeholders involved in that. I work very closely with the Alliance for Insurance Reform and it really is an excellent body in this area.

The questions I had were: what is the primary objective of the code? Will we see meaningful disclosure in how our premiums are calculated? Will there be verification? Will we be reviewing this whole process? It is about redress and safeguarding policyholders so they actually understand everything, especially older people trying to figure out their premiums. The number of people who say to me, "Oh my God, my insurance was €600 last year, this year it is €700 and I have not had a claim." It is so frustrating.

I am looking for an answer on this one thing that we are supposed to have done by the end of the year - it is now 3 or 4 December; I do not even know what date it is - and there is one relevant paragraph in the answer. I knew everything else in the reply. We all know about everything else, about all the work we are doing, and I am very grateful we are doing all of this work. Considering it took two weeks for me to get this Commencement matter selected, I would have thought I would have had a better answer on how the transparency code is going and what it actually means for people. I thank the Minister of State but I am just a bit disappointed.

Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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I hear the Senator's disappointment and will bring that back to the Minister of State. I thank her for raising this important issue and for her contribution today. The Government is keenly aware of the cost of insurance for consumers. Indeed, we as politicians, across all parties, are keenly aware of it because we pay insurance ourselves and our constituents have to pay it. We have to be clear with the insurance industry that we fully expect cost savings achieved through the reform agenda to be passed on to consumers in the form of reduced premiums. A transparency code is an important additional reform to enhance trust and improve consumers' decision-making.

The Minister of State has said he will also be meeting the CEOs of the major insurance companies later this month to communicate the expectation that the code be widely adopted and consistently applied. In addition, he will also press upon them the need to play their part by ensuring the benefits of reform are felt directly by consumers through lower premiums and greater confidence in the market. The Senator said she wants to find out what the primary objective of the code is. I will pass that on to the Minister of State. By working together and raising this matter in the Seanad we can achieve a competitive and sustainable insurance market in Ireland that supports the transparency the Senator is calling for, fairness and affordability for all consumers.