ISME featured in the media
SATURDAY
The Irish Examiner, 14/12/19
Ireland to benefit from Johnson’s majority amid ‘topsy turvy’ Brexit risk
Irish business leaders and analysts have hailed the prospects for the UK approving the withdrawal agreement next month but warn that the risk of Brexit disruption may be just delayed for a year. The surge in sterling marks “a good time for Irish exporters” and Boris Johnson’s huge majority lessens the influence of Brexit hardliners considerably, according to head of business group Isme, Neil McDonnell.
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SUNDAY
The Irish Mirror, 15/12/19
Irish customers should support local businesses this Christmas rather than shopping online, ISME says
People need to support local firms in the run-up to Christmas rather than buy online, it has been claimed. The Irish Small and Medium Enterprise Association (ISME) have said that buying from a small business has a massive knock on effect on the local economy.
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FRIDAY
LMFM, 20/12/19
Neil McDonnell spoke with The Michael Reade Show on LM FM about insurance.
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Insurance reform in the media
SUNDAY
The Independent, 15/12/19
Will cost of car insurance go up if I accept compensation?
Query: A few months ago, my car was struck while parked in a shopping centre car park. The driver left a note on my window and asked me to ring a number.
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MONDAY
The Irish Times 16/12/19
Motor insurance premiums up 42% even though claims fall, Central Bank report finds
The cost of motor insurance claims fell by 2.5 per cent between 2009 and 2018 but premiums rose by 42 per cent, according to a Central Bank report which also revealed that insurers made an average of 9 per cent profit last year.
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The Irish Examiner, 16/12/19
Creches fear they will be forced to close amid rising insurance costs
Thousands of parents are set to be left without childcare from January as creches close their doors because of an insurance crisis. The departure of one of the biggest insurance providers in the sector means creches and childcare providers are now being quoted more than triple their current policy or have been completely left without cover.
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The Irish Examiner, 16/12/19
Call for Govt to implement Judicial Council Bill to allow reform of insurance industry
The director of Government Affairs for Insurance Ireland, Declan Jackson, has called on the Government to immediately implement the Judicial Council Bill to allow for the recalibration of personal injury awards. He was responding to new figures from the Central Bank that reveal the cost of motor insurance claims fell 2.5% between 2009 and 2018, but premiums rose 42%.
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RTE, 16/12/19
Motor premiums rise 42% despite cost of claims falling – Central Bank research
Average motor insurance premiums in Ireland rose 42% between 2009 and 2018, despite a decrease of 2.5% in the average cost of claims per policy over the same period, new data has revealed. The statistics also show that the average legal costs for motor insurance injury claims settled through litigation between 2015 and 2018 were €23,031.
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The Independent, 16/12/19
Damning report shows motor insurers making huge profits after hike in premiums
A damning report from the Central Bank shows insurance companies are making huge profits on the backs of motorists. The report shows premiums costs are up, but claims down. And insurance company profits on motor cover are at a high.
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The Irish Mirror, 16/12/19
Ireland’s motor insurance ‘rip-off culture’ exposed as companies see profits increase despite claims costs falling
Insurance companies’ profits have soared in the past decade – but the costs of claims to them have gone down. This was one of the findings of the special Central Bank report commissioned to find out why consumers are being fleeced with spiralling motor insurance costs.
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The Journal.ie, 16/12/19
Pearse Doherty: Damning Central Bank report reveals an insurance industry that prizes profits above its customers
Insurance costs are squeezing incomes and crippling business.Spiralling premium increases are forcing businesses to close, hitting jobs and hurting communities. For motorists, extortionate premiums are eating into their pay packets.
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Irish Post, 16/12/19
Car insurers accused of scamming Irish motorists with 42% premium hike despite claims dropping by 40%
A new report on the cost of car insurance, compiled using data from the National Claims Information Database (NCID), has been published by the Central Bank of Ireland, and the results were eyebrow-raising.
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Extra.ie, 16/12/19
Motor insurance premiums increase 42% over past decade
The average motor insurance premium has increased 42% from €498 in 2009 to €706 in 2018, according to a Central Bank report on the National Claims Information Database (NCID).
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Belfast Telegraph, 16/12/19
Average notor insurance premiums increase 42% between 2009-2018 – report
The average motor insurance premium has increased 42% from €498 in 2009 to €706 in 2018, according to a Central Bank report on the National Claims Information Database (NCID).
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TUESDAY
The Irish Times, 17/12/19
Calls for action as insurance industry’s profits soar
A report has revealed the average motor insurance premium increased by 42% between 2009 and 2018, despite the cost of claims falling by 2.5% during the same period.
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The Irish Times, 17/12/19
Excessive profit-taking fuelling insurance crisis, says Flanagan
A large part of the responsibility for the insurance crisis is due to “excessive profit-taking on the part of insurance companies,” the Minister for Justice and Equality Charlie Flanagan has said.
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The Irish Times, 17/12/19
Off-duty Garda sues over fall during Foo Fighters concert at Slane Castle
An off-duty Garda who claims she broke her ankle after slipping on mucky ground while attending a concert at Slane Castle has sued for damages in the High Court.
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The Independent, 17/12/19
Insurers are told to slash their rip-off motor rates after premiums soared by up to 42pc
Insurers have been called on to immediately cut motor premiums after a damning report from the Central Bank showed the industry making huge profits on the back of drivers.
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The Independent, 17/12/19
Young athlete (15) awarded €44k damages after trip in city car park
A very accomplished young athlete, who suffered the agony of walking for weeks on an undetected broken bone in her right foot, has been awarded almost €44,000 damages in the Circuit Civil Court.
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RTE, 17/12/19
Childcare facilities may be forced to close over insurance costs
Childcare facilities say they may be forced to increase fees for thousands of parents in the New Year, while some providers say they may be forced to close because of big hikes in insurance renewal quotes.
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The Independent, 17/12/19
Charlie Weston: ‘The term ‘ri-off’ is overused – but in this instance it is entirely appropriate
So now we know and it is official. Insurers are ripping off motorists. We have all suspected that to be case and the Central Bank has finally confirmed it. And before lawyers engage in their usual game of blaming insurance crisis on insurers, they have been shown up in a bad light too in an explosive new data set from the Central Bank.
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BreakingNews.ie, 17/12/19
Junior Minister wants insurance firms to reduce car insurance premiums
The Junior Finance Michael D’Arcy has denied he has been “asleep at the wheel” when it comes to the current insurance crisis. It comes after a Central Bank report found that the cost of premiums rose 42% over the last decade.
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WEDNESDAY
The Irish Times, 18/12/19
Insurance industry only telling half the story on high premiums
There’s an old adage that if you’re explaining, you’re losing, and it’s one that is apt for the insurance industry right now. On Monday, the Central Bank of Ireland appeared to debunk a lot of the claims made by the industry about why premiums have been rising so steeply in recent years.
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The Irish Times, 18/12/19
Competition authority’s motor insurance inquiry at ‘advanced stage’
The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) is at an “advanced stage” of an investigation launched three years ago into whether motor insurers and brokers had engaged in anti-competitive practices by openly signalling premium price moves.
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RTE, 18/12/19
Govt cannot stem rising childcare insurance costs – D’Arcy
Minister of State with special responsibility for Insurance, Michael D’Arcy, has said there is nothing the Government can do to intervene in stemming rising insurance costs in the childcare sector. Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Mr D’Arcy said the Government could not intervene in a sector that had market viability.
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TheJournal.ie, 18/12/19
Warnings for ‘thousands of families’ as creches face closure due to big insurance hikes
A group representing childcare providers has said that “thousands of families” could be left without childcare in the new year due to an “imminent insurance crisis” in the sector. The crisis has come after Ironshore Europe, one of the biggest insurers in the childcare sector, withdrew from the Irish market.
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The Independent, 18/12/19
Over 1,000 créches at risk of closure as minister threatens to ‘super tax’ insurance profits
There are renewed fears for more than 1,000 crèches around the country after they were told no alternative insurer could be secured for their business. There are renewed fears for more than 1,000 crèches around the country after they were told no alternative insurer could be secured for their business.
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The Independent, 18/12/19
Childcare providers to receive €1,500 one-off payment to deal with extra insurance costs
Minister for Children Katherine Zappone says the government will be sanctioning a one-off payment averaging €1,500 to registered childcare providers to deal with extra insurance costs. Ms Zappone said the payments will be issued by December 28.
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The Independent, 18/12/19
‘Insurance sector telling us porky-pies for quite some time’ – Fine Gael TD Alan Farrell
A Fine Gael TD who made a compensation claim for whiplash after his car was pranged at 5mph has accused the insurance sector of telling “porky-pies”. Alan Farrell took a €15,000 legal case as a result of the road accident – but was only awarded €2,500 after a judge described his injuries as “very minor”.
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Sinn Fein.ie, 18/12/19
Pearse Doherty TD’s Consumer Insurance Contracts Bill passes all stages in Oireachtas
Sinn Féin Finance spokesperson Pearse Doherty TD has welcomed the passage of Sinn Féin’s Consumer Insurance Contracts Bill through all stages of the Oireachtas this evening.
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South East Radio, 18/12/19
More insurance firms are needed to help tackle high prices – D’Arcy
The level of awards handed out over insurance claims in courts needs to be addressed to attract new firms into the Irish market.
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THURSDAY
The Irish Times, 19/12/19
Legal bill for settled motor insurance claims about €500m
The legal bill for motor insurance claims that were settled in the cours between 2015 and 2018 amounted to just under €500 million, The Irish Times has learned. The figure is based on data used by the Central Bank of Ireland for its Private Motor Insurance Report, which was published on Monday and shone a light on settlement costs here over the past decade.
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The Irish Times, 19/12/19
Traveller family awarded €33,000 over ‘shocking’ pub case
There was neither room nor food at the inn for a heavily pregnant mother, her husband, their four children and two elderly grandparents because they were Travellers, Judge John O’Connor said in the Circuit Civil Court on Thursday.
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The Independent, 19/12/19
Fears hospitality sector will be latest to hit ‘huge trouble’ as leading insurers exit market
There are fears restaurants and cafes may now be faced with soaring premiums after business owners were notified that three leading insurers may not be offering renewals for 2020. Dolmen Insurance Brokers Ireland notified The Restaurants Association of Ireland of the news on Wednesday.
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BreakingNews.ie, 19/12/19
Cafés face soaring premiums as four major insurers set to leave the market
Restaurants and cafés face soaring premiums in the new year as a number of leading insurers are set to leave the market. Adrian Cummins, chief executive of the Restaurants Association of Ireland, has called for the creation of a “insurance reform unit” adding that small business are not in a position to wait for change as premiums continue to rise.
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Irish Cycling News , 19/12/19
Resolution of insurance issues in Cork
Cycling Ireland is pleased to confirm this morning (19 Dec 2019) that Cork City Council’s insurance brokers have confirmed they have received sufficient clarification from CI’s brokers O’Driscoll O’Neill on the insurance cover issues raised, and have agreed in principle with them, on the necessary steps to enable Cork BMX Club use the BMX Track and allow other cycling events take place in Tranmore Valley Park.
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FRIDAY
The Independent, 20/12/19
Domino effect: fears more insurers will now pull out
Fears are mounting that a ‘domino effect’ will mean even more sectors will follow the childcare and hospitality industries into an insurance crisis. There are growing concerns that restaurants and cafés may now be faced with soaring premiums after business owners were notified that three leading insurers may not be offering renewals for 2020.
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