Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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329. To ask the Minister for Finance if his attention has been drawn to an issue (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28723/17]

Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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330. To ask the Minister for Finance if adjustments companies such as a company (details supplied) are required to facilitate the special needs of the disabled; the State measures which exist to discourage excessively aggressive claim management by loss adjusters and insurers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28724/17]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 329 and 330 together.

As Minister for Finance, I have responsibility for the development of the legal framework governing financial regulation in Ireland, including the regulatory environment for life and non-life insurance.  The legal and regulatory framework for the provision of life insurance, non-life insurance and reinsurance in the European Economic Area (EEA), and the supervision of that activity, is prescribed by EU Directives.  Insurance companies that operate in this jurisdiction must therefore operate under those requirements.Consequently, it would not be appropriate for me to provide a comment in relation to the companies in question.  It should also be noted that requirements set out under equality legislation are a matter for my colleague, the Minister for Justice and Equality.

You should be aware that the Central Bank of Ireland has two specific mandates as regards insurance supervision.  Firstly, it is responsible for the prudential supervision of insurance companies it has authorised by seeking to ensure that such firms remain solvent.  Secondly, the Central Bank of Ireland is responsible for the supervision of conduct of business in Ireland, also referred to as consumer protection.

In relation to your question, the Central Bank has informed me that its Consumer Protection Code 2012 requires that regulated entities:

- must ensure that in all dealings with customers and within the context of their authorization, they act honestly, fairly and professionally in the best interests of their customers and the integrity of the market;

- must also act with due skill, care and diligence in the best interests of its customers, and must not exert undue pressure or undue influence on a customer;

- must ensure that in all its dealings with customers and within the context of its authorisation, it makes full disclosure of all relevant material information, including all charges, in a way that seeks to inform the customer;

- must ensure that any outsourced activity also complies with the requirements of the Code;

- must ensure that any claim settlement offer is fair, taking into account all relevant factors, and represents the regulated entity’s best estimate of the claimant’s reasonable entitlement under the policy; and

- must be available to discuss all aspects of the claim with the claimant, including assessment of liability and damages, during normal office hours, or outside of these hours if agreed with the claimant.

Furthermore, the Code requires that where a regulated entity engages the services of a loss adjustor and/or expert appraiser it must notify the claimant of the contact details of the loss adjuster and/or expert appraiser it has appointed to assist in the processing of the claim and the regulated entity must maintain a record of this notification.

In addition, Section 3.1 of the Code states that; “Where a regulated entity has identified that a personal consumer is a vulnerable consumer, the regulated entity must ensure that the vulnerable consumer is provided with such reasonable arrangements and/or assistance that may be necessary to facilitate him or her in his or her dealings with the regulated entity.” It defines a vulnerable customer as follows:  A “vulnerable consumer” means a natural person who:

a) has the capacity to make his or her own decisions but who, because of individual circumstances, may require assistance to do so (for example, hearing impaired or visually impaired persons); and/or

b) has limited capacity to make his or her own decisions and who requires assistance to do so (for example, persons with intellectual disabilities or mental health difficulties).

Finally, although I am not in a position to comment on individual cases, if a policyholder is dissatisfied with the service received from an insurance company, he/she should, according to the Financial Services Ombudsman’s Bureau, initially submit a complaint in writing to the company itself and then go through its complaint handling process to conclusion – for more details see link below: