Aindrias Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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343. To ask the Minister for Finance the legislative steps planned to tackle the ongoing high cost of insurance, especially motor insurance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1817/21]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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The Government’s Action Plan for Insurance Reformcontains a range of deliverables, including legislation where required, in a number of Government Department policy areas. Work is underway in relation to certain areas, including:

- implementing the new Personal Injuries Guidelines to replace the Book of Quantumviafurther amendments to the Judicial Council Act 2019;

- examining legal changes to the duty of care;

- reducing insurance fraud and placing perjury on a statutory footing, making the offence easier to prosecute;

- strengthening the legal enforcement powers of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission; and

- enhancing the role of the Personal Injuries Assessment Board, including through legislative change.

In addition to this work, there has been recent intensive engagement with key stakeholders by Minister of State Fleming, including meetings with the major insurers, the Alliance for Insurance Reform and industry representatives Insurance Ireland. He is due to meet with the major insurers again in the coming weeks. Separately, an Office to Promote Competition in the Insurance Markethas been recently established within the Department of Finance and work is underway to increase market transparency through the National Claims Information Database (NCID), including for employer and public liability insurance.

With regard to the specific issue of the cost of motor insurance premiums, I would draw the Deputy’s attention to data from the Central Bank’s NCID Private Motor Insurance Report 2, published in November. This shows the average earned premium for private motor insurance decreased by 9 per cent to the end of 2019 from its mid-2018 peak. I would reasonably expect that the next report – covering 2020 – will show further reductions. Separately, the most recent data from the Central Statistics Office’s Consumer Price Index indicates that motor premiums have reduced by just over 30 per cent from their July 2016 peak. While for methodological reasons, these datasets are not directly comparable, both have indicated the same downward trend for some time. This in part reflects the positive work done by the Cost of Insurance Working Group, and it is the Government’s intention to build on this success viathe new Action Plan.

In conclusion, seeking to secure a more sustainable and competitive market through deepening and widening the supply of insurance in Ireland remains a priority issue for this Government. Both I and Minister of State Fleming will continue to play a lead role in this policy area.