Business owner and Meath senator welcomes rejection of personal injury increase
The recent decision to reject a Judicial Council recommendation to increase personal injury awards has been welcomed by Fine Gael Senator Linda Nelson Murray, who stressed that such increases would have burdened small businesses and employers with higher insurance premiums.
Senator Nelson Murray spoke out after Tánaiste Simon Harris chaired a Cabinet Sub-Committee on Insurance Reform meeting, where it was decided that a proposed 16.7pc increase in personal injury awards would not proceed due to the significant costs it would impose on businesses.
The proposed changes would have raised the lowest personal injury award from €500 to €585 and the highest award, for the most severe injuries, from €550,000 to €642,000.
“Businesses are faced with an array of increased costs and we simply cannot add more fuel to the fire by doing something that will drive premiums up,” Ms Nelson Murray said.
“I fully support anyone who has suffered a severe injury being fully compensated and taken care of, but we need to examine the lower end of the market – the smaller claims.”
“As it stands, there are still so many groups and businesses that still either cannot get insurance or cannot get insurance at a fair price. I have first-hand experience of the stress of trying to source insurance like so many other businesses have,” she added.
The Meath West senator, who runs a family business, Huckleberry’s Den in Navan, Co Meath, recalled how five years ago she was just weeks away from closing the play and activity centre due to an inability to secure insurance.
“I am one of those people who has been impacted. I absolutely know what is going on.”
“Over the past few years, we have witnessed an excellent programme of insurance reform delivered by the previous Government. This has reduced both the volume of Personal Injury Claims and the levels of compensation awarded. It is incumbent on the insurance companies to now pass on the benefits of these reforms to businesses and consumers,” Ms Nelson Murray said.