Third party car insurance chaos is driving the nation crazy
As it stands, the cost of insurance to pensioners using their car to go shopping or to church is the same as for professionals covering more than 500 miles per week. This is patently unfair.
Equally unfair is the added cost to all insured drivers of claims involving uninsured drivers.
The myriad of premium loadings imposed on young and not-so-young drivers, not to mention the iniquitous classification system operated by the industry to extract further revenue from drivers of “wrong” class vehicles, adds further inequity to the system. And insurers have failed to reward claim-free drivers.
Finally, there is the massive cost to all taxpayers of policing and prosecuting infringements of our motor insurance laws. Why should non-drivers have to pay such costs?
The fact that the State requires all drivers to be covered by third party insurance, while at the same time standing idly by in the face of such inequity in the system of insurance, suggests strongly that a radical change in policy is called for.
This should ensure that:
1. All drivers be automatically covered by third party insurance whilst in charge of a vehicle;
2. Insurance costs be related to direct risk factors such as distance driven, engine power and vehicle size (all reflected in fuel consumption);
3. A system of policing, penalties and awards be put in force to remove unqualified (for whatever reason) and offending drivers from our roads and to recover at least some of the costs of claims directly from offending drivers and from other negligent road users.
A possible solution lies in the imposition of an insurance-specific fuel tax that would be used by the State to buy general third party cover from commercial insurers on a competitive basis and to fund the costs of policing and enforcement.
Doubtless, there are alternatives. Let’s hear about them.
Patrick Ronayne,
Drake’s View,
Crosshaven,
Co Cork
