I have called on the Government to intervene immediately in light of the very disappointing new Personal Injuries Guidelines published this weekend by the Judicial Council.
“The Government need to do the right thing for hard-pressed motorists, charities, voluntary and community groups, sports and cultural organisations and SMEs severely affected by insurance costs, by dramatically reducing the proposed damages for minor injuries”.
The new judicial guidelines are set to replace the current Book of Quantum guidelines on the amounts awarded for personal injuries, but they do not go far enough to reduce the excessive damages compared to other countries.
“Getting insurance costs down means cutting the general damages paid out for minor, fully recovered injuries to reflect international norms and norms already established by the Court of Appeal. It would have taken reductions of 80% to the damages handed out for such injuries in order to do so”.
“The Government need to intervene immediately, take control of the situation and cap general damages such that damages for minor injuries are reduced by an average of 80% compared to the previous Book of Quantum guidelines. The Law Reform Commission has made it clear that such an action would be entirely constitutional subject to certain safeguards and it is up to the Government to do the right thing now for the sake of the common good”.
This is about minor injuries, it is not about damages for serious injuries. Where a person is seriously injured due the negligence of someone else, they must be properly compensated and that is what insurance is there for.
“Insurance costs is a huge burden and worry for Irish SMEs, charities, sports and cultural organisations, voluntary and community groups. They are the real victims in this area of excessive damages for minor injuries. They need protection and support by reducing the damages in line with international standards”
“I hope that the Government will support the Civil Liability Bill, I and my Regional Group colleagues will be introducing this Bill in the Dáil this week in an effort to curtail the culture of Fraudulent Claims which is also another burden for business”.