ISME blasts Insurance industry 'profiteering'

The Insurance industry should be audited by a Monitoring Committee according to business lobby group ISME.

It has accused insurance companies of irresponsible mismanagement, hypocrisy and arrogance in attempting to stifle reform in the sector.

ISME Chief Executive, Mark Fielding claimed the industry was 'profiteering' and failing to address what it termed out of control insurance premia built on the backs of the small business community.

Fielding also claimed that small businesses experienced average cumulative increases of 290% in insurance premia in the last four years and that over 3,000 jobs were lost with 100 company closures to-date as a consequence.

"This crisis situation has been created, manipulated and executed by the vested interests within the Insurance Industry Federation," Fielding said.

"The Insurance Business Model was, in the past, based on investment returns subsidising loss making Insurance products with very little effort being made to rectify the situation," he added.

ISME called for the Monitoring Committee to audit Insurance Companies and ensure that cost savings, as a result of reforms and other favourable changes, are passed on in full to the consumer in the form of premium reductions.

"It is imperative that actions are taken sooner rather than later, by legislation if necessary to force the insurance industry to respond quickly and appropriately and not to procrastinate while profiteering, as they have done to date," Fielding concluded.

He was speaking at the Marsh Conference entitled 'From Factory Floor to Courtroom Door ' in Dublin today.