Insurance market to consolidate

FURTHER consolidation in the Irish insurance market looks to be underway.

If the shakeout becomes a reality it will reduce consumer choice even further at a time when the cost of motor and general insurance have gone through the roof in this country.

If it goes ahead, it will further reduce competition in a market where the cost of insurance cover has become one of the major issues in the country. Central to the latest takeover speculation is Eagle Star, subsidiary of the struggling Zurich Financial Services group.