Battle ends 24hrs after regulator seeks €150m

THE sudden decision by Sean Quinn to give up the fight against administration came less than 24 hours after regulator Matthew Elderfield said he would lift the sanction if Quinn could come up with the money.

The group had claimed it only needed €150 million to get back to required solvency levels to cover an influx of claims.

In the High Court yesterday, John Hennessy SC, for Mr Elderfield, told the president of the High Court Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns the company was “no longer opposing” the petition to have Paul McCann and Michael McAteer of Grant Thornton appointed as administrators of Quinn Insurance, which employs some 5,000 people.

Mr Justice Kearns said while he was neither accepting all the assertions made by the regulator nor rejecting any claims made by the company, he was satisfied on the basis of the information before him he could confirm the appointment of both Mr McAteer and Mr McCann as administrators.

The judge, following a request by Bernard Dunleavy for the administrators, agreed to put the matter back to May 20, when a report by the administrators would be put before the court.

Counsel said that his clients would run the company under the specific powers granted to them, and said if they believed it necessary to take certain steps, including placing the company into receivership, they would first have to make an application before the High Court.

Quinn Insurance employs 2,800 workers, while the wider group has about another 2,700 in the multinational’s cement, quarry, glass and property businesses.

Staff, who staged a series of rallies since the regulator moved in two weeks ago, made a complete U-turn after the court hearing and said they were in favour of administration.

“We believe that, for all of us as employees, it is vitally important that we give our full support to the administrative process in order that the business and jobs at Quinn remain viable,” they said.

“We believe the immediate concern for the administrator is to impress on the regulator the importance of the Northern Ireland and UK business.”

The regulator’s move has stopped the firm writing new business in Britain but Mr Elderfield insisted the 1.3 million policyholders would not be disrupted in any way.

Employees also claimed the sanction was losing the business €1.5m every day.

A planned demonstration by hundreds of staff at the regulator’s offices in central Dublin has been cancelled.

A representative of the workers revealed that, instead, a petition with 15,000 signatures would be handed in to Mr Elderfield’s office along with an invitation to meet staff to discuss the status of a business plan to reopen the British business.

Joan Burton, Labour’s finance spokeswoman, said Quinn’s move to accept administration was a welcome development.

“It was clear that the Financial Regulator would have not taken the very major step of seeking the appointment of administrators to these important companies, without very substantial grounds,” she said.

Ms Burton also said Mr Elderfield had made it clear he was not for turning.

“Now that the High Court has confirmed the appointment of the administrators, I hope they will be able to proceed rapidly to sorting out the company’s affairs and taking all possible steps to protect policyholders and preserve jobs,” she said.

The regulator issued a statement insisting both his office and Quinn believed the move was in the best interests of policyholders.

“QIL (Quinn Insurance Ltd) remains able to pay claims and renew policies in the normal way in the Republic and continues to settle claims in the UK,” the body said in a statement.

“The Financial Regulator acts at all times in the best interests of policyholders and in the interests of the orderly regulation of the insurance market.”

The regulator said investigations were continuing into guarantees offered by Quinn Insurance on the group’s wider debts – the company owes €1.2 billion and the family €2.8bn.