Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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52. To ask the Minister for Finance the steps being taken to reduce costs to businesses (details supplied). [21977/18]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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I note that the specific case which the Deputy mentions refers is a business owner seeking motor insurance at a competitive rate. The Deputy will appreciate that it would not be appropriate for me to comment on or review any particular case, but I will focus my reply on the Deputy's question on the steps taken within my remit to address the issue of insurance costs. As Minister for Finance, I am responsible for the development of the legal framework governing financial regulation. Neither I nor the Central Bank of Ireland can interfere in the provision or pricing of insurance products, as these matters are of a commercial nature, and are determined by insurance companies based on an assessment of the risks they are willing to accept. This position is reinforced by the EU framework for insurance which expressly prohibits Member States from adopting rules which require insurance companies to obtain prior approval of the pricing or terms and conditions of insurance products. Consequently, I am not in a position to direct insurance companies as to the pricing level or terms or conditions that they should apply in particular cases.

In making their individual decisions on whether to offer cover and what terms to apply, insurers will use a combination of rating factors, which include the age and type of the vehicle, as well as the age of the driver, the relevant claims record and driving experience, the number of drivers, the profession of the driver and how the car is used, etc. My understanding is that insurers do not all use the same combination of rating factors, and as a result prices and availability of cover varies across the market. In addition, insurance companies will price in accordance with their own past claims experience, meaning that in relation to particular categories, different insurance companies will have different views.

Notwithstanding this, the Cost of Insurance Working Group has published two reports, into the Cost of Motor Insurance (2017) and Employer Liability and Public Liability Insurance (2018) to address the cost of insurance for consumers and businesses alike. The Motor Report made 33 recommendations across six key themes: protecting the consumer; improving data availability; improving the personal injuries claims environment; reducing the costs in the claims process; reducing insurance fraud and uninsured driving, and promoting road safety and reducing collisions. The Employer and Public Liability Report builds on those recommendations and its 15 recommendations focus on increasing transparency, reviewing the level of damages in personal injury actions and improving the personal injuries litigation framework. Both of these reports are available on my Departments website:

Work is ongoing on the implementation of the recommendations made in each of these Reports and the Working Group has committed to publishing quarterly updates on its progress. The fifth such update was published on 11 May and shows that of the 50 separate deadlines set to date within the Action Plan, 40 have been met, while substantial work has also been undertaken in respect of the nine action points categorised as “ongoing”.

It is envisaged that the cumulative effects of the completion of the two Reports’ recommendations will include increased stability in the pricing of insurance for businesses and improved availability of insurance products. In relation to the cost of motor insurance, it should be noted that the most recent CSO data (for April 2018) indicates that private motor insurance premiums have decreased by 19% since peaking in July 2016. While the CSO statistics indicate a greater degree of stability on an overall basis, these figures represent a broad average and therefore there are many people who may still be seeing increases. However, I am hopeful that this greater stability in pricing will be maintained with the result that premiums should continue to fall from the very high levels of mid-2016.