Politicians want high cost of car insurance explained

An Oireachtas committee investigating ways of reforming the insurance market is to ask the Irish Insurance Federation to appear before it again after the industry last week announced record profits on motor cover.

The committee, which will issue a report today recommending ways of reducing insurance costs, wants an explanation of why motor insurance premiums are so high despite profits which wiped out the industry's losses of the past three years.

The chairman of the Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise and Small Business, Fianna Fáil TD Mr Donie Cassidy, said it was time for the industry to "stop whingeing" and help to deliver cheaper premiums.

Labour TD Mr Brendan Howlin said members of the committee had not been given a "full and frank explanation" of the profitability of the insurance market during the federation's recent presentation.

While the industry last week announced profits of €183 million on motor insurance, figures show that other areas of cover, such as employers' and public liability insurance, are loss-making.

A spokesman for the federation, Mr Martin Long, said that the financial health of the motor insurance market was never a secret. Regular reports over the course of the year had indicated it was entering into profitability. He said the industry wanted to work in conjunction with the Government in advancing its insurance reform programme.

One of the main recommendations of the Oireachtas committee's report is expected to be that the Government should abolish its 2 per cent levy on insurance premiums. This will prove uncomfortable for the Government, which has been keen to distance itself from blame for high insurance costs.

The report will say that the insurance companies, which would benefit from the abolition of the levy, should provide cheaper premiums in return.

It will also conclude that a series of additional road safety reforms be undertaken as part of its recommendations for bringing down insurance costs. These will include a requirement that learner-drivers should attend up to three driving courses before sitting their tests.

In addition, the report will support plans announced by the Minister for Transport, Mr Brennan, to seize the vehicles of uninsured drivers.

On the solvency of insurance companies, it will recommend that firms should invest more of their funds into property and infrastructure projects.

The committee's report will also recommend that the Government's plans to reform compensation law and establish a personal injuries assessment board should be implemented without delay.

The rising cost of insurance has become a major political issue, with firms warning that up to 25,000 jobs are at risk unless there is a speedy reduction in employers' and public liability premiums.

In an unusual step, the Government, keen to highlight work being done to address insurance costs, has facilitated the use of Government Buildings for the publication today of the committee's report.