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The Irish Sun
08-05-2025
- Automotive
- The Irish Sun
Major warning to thousands of drivers as car insurance sees huge price hike in first half of year
THOUSANDS of Irish drivers have been hit with a warning about rising insurance costs. It's been revealed that the average cost of 3 Thousands of drivers have been given the warning Credit: Getty 3 Insurance costs have risen by 8/8 per cent this year alone Credit: Getty And the same cost has risen by 12 per cent since 2023, according to the new figures. The numbers come from the Central They show that the average insurance premium is now roughly €616. That's almost double the price of the average READ MORE IN MONEY The numbers also reveal that insurance prices have been steadily increasing since 2022. Although costs are about 25 per cent less than they were at their peak in 2017, they have been rising over the past three years. The price hikes have come despite efforts from the Most read in Money They include a dedicated And there have been efforts made to lower payout expenses in personal injury cases. According to the National Claims Information Database, there were 1.2million new motor insurance policies between January and June last year. This accounted for almost €729 million in premiums. The figures also reveal that the number of Those opting for the comprehensive option made up for 93 per cent of all policies in the first half of 2024. This figure is up 80 per cent from 2009. The new NCID and Central Bank figures come at a time when insurance premiums across the board are increasing in price. Just days ago, it was revealed that Irish people are Despite Car insurance has risen by 8.8 per cent while home insurance is up by 6.8 per cent. And the cost of health insurance continues to climb. 3 New figures show more people are opting for comprehensive insurance rather than third party Credit: Getty
Irish Independent
07-05-2025
- Automotive
- Irish Independent
Motor insurance premiums up 12pc in just two years as average cost revealed
The average premium is now €616, a rise of €67 since 2022, new data from the Central Bank shows. This is an increase of 12pc in the last two years alone. The sharp rise comes despite the Government introducing a number of reforms in an attempt to bring down the cost of insurance for motorists. Among the most significant of these was the agreement by judges to lower the recommended level of payouts in personal injuries cases, and changes to how the Injuries Resolution Board (IRB) operates. A dedicated garda insurance fraud unit has been set up, with changes to duty-of-care legislation, making it harder for those exaggerating compensation claims to get a payout. The Alliance for Insurance Reform, a campaign group, said the premium hikes called into question recommendations from judges to increase the size of damages awards. The Judicial Council has recommended hiking personal injury award guidelines by 16.7pc. This needs to be confirmed by the Government. The mid-year National Claims Information Database (NCID), which is compiled by the Central Bank from data provided by insurers it regulates, shows motor premiums were up by 9pc in the first half of last year. This is when compared with the same period of 2023. How can the Government justify taking steps that will drive the cost of people's car insurance even higher? The report shows a rise of just 1pc in the number of comprehensive policies. Insurers have cited more people taking out comprehensive cover as one of the factors for the continuing rise in motor premium costs. The report found 1.2 million motor policies were taken out in the first half of last year. Gross written premiums for these totalled €729m, and 93pc of the policies were for comprehensive cover. ADVERTISEMENT The Central Bank report shows that the average written premium was €616 in the first half of last year. This is up from €549 in the second half of 2022, but it is down from €729 in the second half of 2018, after various Government measures brought down the cost of claims. Brian Hanley of the Alliance for Insurance Reform, said the Central Bank report shows a sharp rise in motor insurance premiums of 9pc in the first six months of last year. 'Set against this, how can the Government justify taking steps that will drive the cost of people's car insurance even higher?' he said. He added that if adopted, the 17pc increase in personal injury awards will lead directly to even greater increases in car insurance premiums. Motorists, businesses, sporting, community and voluntary groups simply cannot afford for this to happen Mr Hanley said Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan, who is currently considering a recommendation from the Judicial Council that personal injury awards be increased, needs to consider injury awards in this country are higher than in other states. 'Notwithstanding that awards are higher here than in most other countries, and the relatively short time the current award guidelines are in existence (2021), if adopted it will lead directly to even greater increases in policyholder premiums,' Mr Hanley said. 'Motorists, businesses, sporting, community and voluntary groups simply cannot afford for this to happen.' Lobby group for the industry, Insurance Ireland, said premiums were rising due to damage-cost inflation. It added that current average premium costs remain below the previous high point of €729 in 2017. But it said the trend of increased damage claims costs continues, while the use of litigation to settle personal injury claims continues to erode the impact of reforms. Insurance Ireland CEO Moyagh Murdock said: 'Although premiums have begun to increase, reflecting the increased cost environment, Irish motor insurance customers have benefited from significant decreases.' She said the trend of settling claims via the more expensive litigated route continues to add huge costs, despite the fact it doesn't add to the levels of awards the claimant receives via either the IRB process or directly settling claims with insurers.
RTÉ News
06-05-2025
- Automotive
- RTÉ News
Motor insurance costs rose by 9% in first half of last year
The average cost of a motor insurance policy increased by 9% (€49) during the first half of last year, when compared with the first six months in 2023. Latest figures from the Central Bank's National Claims Information Database show that the average premium increased from €567 to €616 over the period. This compares with an average annual premium of €315 across the European Union. Despite the rise, the cost of motor insurance is still around 25% lower than the peak in 2017, but has been steadily rising since 2022. Average premiums fell by 25% between the second half of 2017 and the same period in 2022, however, since then they have increased again by 12%. According to the NCID, between January and June of last year, there were almost 1.2 million new motor insurance policies, which accounted for €729 million in premiums. The figures also show that the proportion of consumers opting for comprehensive insurance cover (as opposed to just third-party cover) continued to increase in H1 2024, making up 93% of all policies and is up from 80% in 2009. Commenting on the figures, Chief Executive of Insurance Ireland Moyagh Murdock said that "although premiums have begun to increase, reflecting the increased cost environment, Irish motor insurance customers have benefitted from significant decreases. "Aside from inflation, there are issues still to be addressed which would take further cost out of the claims environment. The trend of settling claims through the more expensive litigated route continues to add significant cost, despite the fact that it doesn't add to the levels of awards the claimant receives via either the Injuries Resolution Board process or directly settling claims with insurers." Ms Murdock added: "We also note that this is a mid-year report, and we look forward to the full report which will give a broader view, reflecting not just premium costs but also the cost of insurance claims, which have been increasing." Insurance Ireland also said that the Judicial Council's proposed 16.7% increase in the personal injuries guidelines is "concerning as it may erode the progress made by the Government's Insurance Reform agenda". Chief Executive of the Alliance for Insurance Reform Brian Hanley said the "sharp rise" in premiums highlighted in the Central Bank's report will be no surprise to consumers. Mr Hanley added: "Set against this, how can the Government justify taking steps that will drive the cost of people's car insurance even higher? The Minister for Justice, Jim O'Callaghan, is currently considering a recommendation from the Judicial Council that personal injury awards be increased by almost 17% in the coming weeks. "Notwithstanding that awards are higher here than in most other countries and the relatively short time the current award guidelines are in existence, if adopted it will lead directly to even greater increases in policyholder premiums. Motorists, businesses, sporting, community and voluntary groups simply cannot afford for this to happen."
RTÉ News
04-05-2025
- Automotive
- RTÉ News
What's being done to lower the cost of car insurance and is it working?
This week the Government launched the latest public consultation on insurance reform. It is part of a new action plan on insurance, aimed at encouraging more competition in the market and with the ultimate goal of bringing premium prices down. The previous government had a similar action plan that had some notable achievements such as the introduction of personal injuries guidelines, reforms of the Injuries Resolution Board, and passing legislation revising the duty of care owed by occupiers. While these measures were broadly welcomed, they did not make much of a dent in the cost of car insurance. And when we delve into the figures we can see why. Take the personal injuries guidelines for example. They were brought in for 2021 and set guideline levels for personal injury compensation awards that are used by both the courts and the Injuries Resolution Board to assess compensation levels for personal injury claims. According to the Central Bank's National Claims Information Database - a reliable independent guide on the cost of both motor premiums and claims - the guidelines have led to a reduction in the cost of injury claims. Between 2022 and 2023 (the most recent year for which we have accurate data), the number of personal injury claims was unchanged, however, the total value of such claims fell by €12 million (from €434 million to €422 million). Despite this the overall cost of claims over the same period rose (from €763 million in 2022 to €816 million in 2023). Why was this? A €65 million jump in damage claims. This meant that insurers' ultimate cost of claims per policy increased by 5% in 2023 to €369, which is a similar level to the years before the Covid pandemiand the highest figure since 2016. So while injury awards have reduced, damage claims have increased. Motor premiums paid by drivers are also on the way back up. The average policy cost in 2023 was €568 - 2% higher than the previous year. In relation to this, insurance companies will point to figures showing that the proportion of policies that include comprehensive cover, rather than third-party, has increased from 83% of policies in 2017 to 93% in 2023. In addition premiums fell by 23% between 2017 and 2022, but that was after a huge jump of 67% in the previous five years. Level of uninsured vehicles dropping Another strategy to tackle high policy costs has been to target uninsured drivers. The Motor Insurers' Bureau of Ireland (MIBI) estimates that claims involving uninsured drivers add up to €35 to the cost of every motor insurance policy. In 2022, MIBI figures indicated there were around 187,000 uninsured vehicles on Irish roads, which was four times higher than the EU average. But since the introduction last year of the Irish Motor Insurance Database, which helps gardaí to more easily detect uninsured drivers, that figure has fallen to around 100,000. However, Insurance Ireland - the group representing insurers - says it will likely take some time for this drop to work its way through the sector in relation to lowering premiums. The Alliance for Insurance Reform has welcomed all of the reforms and initiatives mentioned here but said that "it must be a source of growing frustration for politicians, as it is to policyholders, that the reforms to date have primarily benefited insurance company profit margins, rather than reducing the premiums people pay". Improving competition According to the Alliance, what will have the biggest impact in significantly driving down insurance costs for drivers is more competition - attracting new entrants into the market. That could be tricky in the short-term though; Ireland is a relatively small market with high costs. Also, the track record of big insurers entering the Irish market and competing on price has not been great. Quinn Insurance (2010) and Setanta Insurance (2014) both had high-profile collapses and these cases may make some wary of operating here. We have in and around 25 companies selling car insurance here. That might seem like a good number, but compare that with markets like France and Germany where there are three to four times as many providers for consumers to choose from. The average annual motor premium for the EU is €315 - Ireland's average is not far off double this figure. But the cost of claims here is a lot higher than the EU average, and it's unlikely we'll get down to that level any time soon. As part of its public consultation on insurance reform, the Government says it's keen to hear from consumers, representative groups, and those operating in the insurance sector. As mentioned earlier, those suggestions bore some fruit last time this was done. Proposed rise in personal injuries guidelines Though what might have a major effect on the cost of insurance before any more new initiatives are a factor is the Judicial Council's proposed 16.7% increase in the personal injuries guidelines. Insurance Ireland said this could "erode" the progress made by the Government's insurance reform agenda, and that it may prove counter-productive in terms of encouraging further competition in the Irish insurance market. The Oireachtas will ultimately decide whether this increase will be approved, and if it is then the inevitable rise in the cost of claims that follows will very likely be passed on - adding more pain to consumers in terms of higher insurance premiums.
