HANDS up all those surprised

that insurance premiums continue to rise as the costs of settling claims fall? Nobody… wow, that’s a surprise. Fact is, it’s only the most naive amongst us who would have expected the insurance industry to come out with their hands up and announce they were returning to customers any of the significant cost savings arising from insurance reform legislation of recent years, including the leaner-minded Injuries Resolution Board.

So premiums shot up by 8% in 2022 when the total cost of settlements fell by 14%, which translates with wonderful symmetry into insurers notching up a 14% operating profit of €176m. Think Ebenezer Scrooge, or the banks raking it in with entirely unearned windfall profits from extortionate interest rates caused by inflation in which they had no role whatsoever, and you won’t be far wrong.

The Government does the heavy lifting by suppressing the cost of claims and the insurance companies do the heavy shifting of large profits into their own back pockets. It’s little wonder that the Alliance for Insurance Reform is entirely unimpressed, saying that reforms have failed to deliver lower premiums despite a massive 41% drop in claims since 2019.

The true character of our current heroes in Government Buildings was revealed on Thursday when Dara Calleary, Junior Minister for This and That, said he was – reaching for his revolver?... Actually no, he didn’t say that at all. Rather, he said he was ‘disappointed’.

Good man Dara. That’ll put the frighteners on them and that’s for sure.