Most motorists agree average €15,000 payout for whiplash is too high
MOST motorists believe personal injury awards are too high in this country.
Court awards that are a multiple of those in Britain or France are seen as one of the key reasons insurance costs are so high, pushing some motorists off the road and putting pressure on businesses.
Close to six out of 10 motorists believe the awards for whiplash are unjustly high, according to a survey of more than 5,000 motorists undertaken by AA Car Insurance.
Another 22pc of respondents partially agreed that compensation for whiplash injuries needs to be lowered.
AA Ireland said it had been at pains to highlight that the lottery aspect of court awards for personal injuries had played a major role in rising motor insurance premiums.
The survey also found that when whiplash injuries are excluded, almost three-quarters of motorists at least partially agree that personal injury awards remain too high.
When asked for their opinions of court awards relating to non-whiplash injuries, almost half of respondents strongly agreed that such payouts in Ireland are too high, with a further quarter partially agreeing with this message.
The Government has appointed former High Court president Nicky Kearns to chair the Personal Injuries Commission, which is looking at award levels here compared with other countries. Whiplash accounts for about 80pc of claims here. The average payout is about €15,000, four times higher than in the UK.
Conor Faughnan, of AA Ireland, said the Government needed to do more to deal with the insurance crisis.
“For almost three years now, the AA has been highlighting that the simple solution is to strengthen the book of quantum and the Personal Injuries Assessment Board (PIAB).”
The book of quantum reflects award levels of a range of injuries made in the courts and by the PIAB. Judges have to have regard to the book of quantum, but are not bound by it.
Mr Faughnan said a stronger PIAB would reduce the number of cases going to court.
All claims have to initially go through the board, but can go on to court if the award is rejected or the claimant fails to submit a medical report.
Mr Faughnan said making it more difficult for claimants to reject an offer from the PIAB
would cut claims costs for insurers.
“If we can get the book of quantum to a position where members of the judiciary are satisfied with it, the disparity we often see between court awards and the original PIAB recommendation will greatly shrink, meaning less people chancing their arm in court in the hopes of a bigger payout.”
He said there had been cases where final court awards greatly exceed what would have been recommended by the PIAB.