Minister for Business Heather Humphreys has requested the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) to undertake a study of the public liability insurance market.

The rising cost of insurance premiums for businesses, particularly marts, off the back of possible fraudulent claims has become a major concern.

Bogus claims

ICOS livestock services executive Ray Doyle has said that bogus claims need to be deterred and marts need to be protected from such claims to ensure they do not go out of business.

There are also concerns that some larger insurers affect competitive pricing of insurance.

There is no silver-bullet solution to this issue

Minister Humphreys requested that the CCPC examine “how that market operates, how competition works in that market and whether any practice or method of competition affects the pricing levels of public liability insurance within that market”.

“The study forms part of the Government-wide response to tackling the cost of insurance.

“There is no silver-bullet solution to this issue, but we are committed to ensuring that we are using every lever available to us to ease the pressure on businesses and consumers.”

The Minister has told the CCPC to treat the study as a matter of priority.

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