An estimated 3,100 drivers in Mayo are going without insurance, and claims against drivers of such vehicles are costing the general public heavily. This is sccording to Brian McNelis, director of general services at the Irish Brokers Association, who stated:
“There are 52,916 licensed private cars in Mayo and it is estimated that 3,100 of these could be uninsured. What the general public in Mayo may not know is that these uninsured drivers could be indirectly costing them an additional €30 on their annual car insurance premiums.”
He continued: “Figures show that 2,286 claims payments were made by the Motor Insurer’s Bureau of Ireland (MIBI ) in 2010 totalling €58.9m in claims compensation, legal and medical costs caused by uninsured and untraced drivers. The figures for 2011 have not been released as yet, however, the Irish Brokers Association don’t expect to see any improvement in the overall volume or cost. They say that claims are paid by the MIBI, which is 100 per cent funded by the motor insurers and that the funds to pay for such claims are made up of consumers’ money as they are funded out of the insurance premiums paid by other drivers, approximately €30 per driver.
“The UK have now made it illegal to own an uninsured vehicle, even if it is kept off the roads, in an attempt to stamp out uninsured driving. However, we believe that such measures may be a little harsh on those that have fallen on hard times and have had to take their car off the road for a period of time. We do however feel that the current penalties are not acting as a sufficient deterrent and would urge compliant drivers to report those that don’t have insurance as they are ultimately paying their insurance for them.”
The Irish Brokers Association is the professional body of Insurance Brokers in Ireland representing more than 700 insurance intermediary offices that are authorised and regulated by the Central Bank.
The Motor Insurers’ Bureau of Ireland (MIBI ) is a non-profit-making organisation registered in Ireland. The company was established by agreement between the Government and those companies underwriting motor insurance in Ireland to compensate innocent victims of accidents caused by uninsured and unidentified vehicles.
