Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 December 2025
564. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the key measures taken under the remit of his Department to control insurance costs during 2025; his priorities for 2026; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [73548/25]
View answerMy Department is actively contributing to a programme of insurance reform which is being implemented on a whole-of-government basis.
There are clear signs that the market is responding to the Government’s actions, with insurers moving into previously challenging areas such as childcare, leisure activities and sports. We have also seen that incumbent providers are expanding their product offerings into areas such as SMEs, hospitality, agriculture, and energy, and there has been renewed international interest in Ireland as an insurance destination.
The Occupiers Liability Act 1995 was amended in 2023 with a view to making insurance more affordable for consumers, businesses and community groups. The amendments to the Act:
inserted into primary law a number of recent court decisions which rebalance the duty of care owed by occupiers to visitors and recreational users;
changed the standard to clarify that when the occupier of a property has acted with reckless disregard for a visitor or customer, it is the standard of reckless disregard rather than reasonable grounds which should apply in relation to any consideration of liability;
limited the circumstances in which a court can impose liability on the occupier of a premises where a person has entered onto premises for the purpose of committing an offence; and
allowed for a broader range of scenarios where it can be shown that a visitor or customer has voluntarily assumed a risk resulting in harm.
The amendments contained in the Act were designed to strike the right balance between ensuring businesses, community groups and organisers of events fulfil their duty of care responsibilities, while also acknowledging the importance of personal responsibility of visitors, recreational users and trespassers. The impact of these changes will be assessed over time.
As the Deputy will be aware, the first iteration of the Personal Injury Guidelines came into effect in April 2021 and have had a clear and significant cost saving impact since their introduction. On the 17 September, as required by section 7 of the Judicial Council Act 2019, I laid revised personal injury guidelines before the Houses of the Oireachtas. Prior to the laying of the documents, I consulted Ministerial colleagues and the Attorney General in relation to the proposed increase in award amounts contained in the Judicial Council’s proposals.
While there were concerns that any delay in the adoption of new guidelines could lead to the courts being invited to depart from the guidelines and to seek higher awards reflecting the effect of inflation, to be applied at the discretion of the Court, I was also conscious of concerns raised in relation to potential inflationary pressures. Therefore, it is my intention not to bring a Resolution before the Houses seeking the approval of the guidelines at this time. In effect, this means that the amended Guidelines cannot come into effect and the existing Guidelines will remain in place.
In addition, I have received Government approval to draft a general scheme of a Bill to amend the Judicial Council Act 2019 to make reviews of the Personal Injuries Guidelines more comprehensive and transparent. I intend to bring the General Scheme of the Bill to Government early in the New Year, after which it will be referred for Pre-Legislative Scrutiny.
The Government is conscious that further work needs to be done to compel insurance companies to lower their premia, a point that has been frequently made by the Taoiseach, Tánaiste and Minister of State Robert Troy, who has published a new Action Plan for Insurance Reform.
I am also conscious of the impact legal costs can have on insurance premia. I have received government approval to draft a Civil Reform Bill which among other matters will see the monetary jurisdiction of the District Court increase from €15,000 to €20,000 while in the Circuit Court it will increase from €75,000 to €100,000. The lower limit for personal injury cases in the Circuit Court will also increase from €60,000 to €100,000. These changes will result in a higher proportion of civil actions being heard in the District and Circuit Courts, leading to lower legal costs for all parties involved
