Call for greater safety in Ireland

Dick O'Driscoll, new MD of Hibernian Insurance called for Irish TDs and Senators to make Ireland a safer place to live, work, and drive in his address to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Enterprise and Small Business.

He said that stringent enforcement of all health and safety legislation would see a reduction in the high frequency of insurance claims.

The presentation covered a new report on the insurance industry from actuaries Tillinghast-Towers Perrin.

It found that personal injury awards in Ireland are greater than ten times those of the UK, whereas Irish spending on occupational health and safety was only half that of Britain.

It also found that motor offence detection rates are low in Ireland by international standards, and that Ireland has a poor safety record both on the roads and in the workplace, in comparison with Europe.