The number of personal injuries claims submitted to the Injuries Resolution Board last year rose by 1% to 20,318 when compared with 2023 – but still remain well below pre-pandemic levels.
According to the board’s personal injuries and awards report for 2024, the volume of claims is down by 35% on what was seen in 2019.
It considers 2019 the most relevant year to compare latest figures to – deeming it the last ‘normal’ year before the Covid-19 pandemic.
Claims since 2019 for accidents in workplaces, businesses, and public spaces have fallen by 40%, while motor claims have decreased by 30%.
The Board approved 8,392 compensation awards across 2024, with a median award value of €13,000 (a fall of 29% from the 2020 figure of €18,422).
The average award value for 2024 was €18,967 (a fall of 21% from the €23,877 average from 2020).
The highest award in 2024 was €592,225 for a workplace claim where the worker sustained severe injuries.
The total amount of awards made for the year was just under €160 million.
The report compares the median and average values of personal injury compensation with 2020, as that was the last full year when the Book of Quantum was used as the basis for assessment.
When comparing 2024 claim awards with the previous year, there was 12% rise in the median value to €13,000, and a 4% increase the the average award to €18,967.
The report says this increase reflects the changing profile of injuries within claims, with the Board now assessing more complex injury cases.
Additionally, the Board now assesses wholly psychological injuries, with claims for psychiatric damage injuries increasing from 5% of awards in 2021 to 14% of awards in the seconds half of 2024.
Meanwhile, there was a 5% reduction in workplace injury claims last year when compared to 2023, while claims for accidents in businesses and public spaces remained unchanged from 2023.
The report says these findings highlight stability in sectors that have identified insurance cost and availability as crucial.
Last year the percentage of cases successfully resolved by the Board and not proceeding to litigation rose slightly to 50% (from 48% in 2023, and 44% in 2022).
The Injuries Resolution Board is an independent State body established to resolve personal injuries claims without the need for litigation.
Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Peter Burke said that given the fall in the volume and value of claim awards highlighted in the report he expects “to see this reflected in both the cost and the availability of insurance premiums for citizens and businesses.
“In the Government’s new Action Plan for Insurance Reform I will ensure that the work of the Injuries Resolution Board is further strengthened to continue to drive the important issue of insurance reform, taking account of the wider issue of competitiveness and potential impacts on our economy.”
Head of Research and Policy at the Injuries Resolution Board Dr Lauren Swan said the “latest Award Values report shows that despite record employment levels and a return to pre-pandemic traffic volumes, personal injury claim volumes in 2024 remained 35% lower than 2019.
Injuries Resolution Board CEO Rosalind Carroll said the report shows that “respondents are choosing our services in record numbers, with consent rates now at 71%, and acceptance of our awards is also up”.
The Alliance for Insurance Reform has welcomed the report, which it says “highlights sustained reductions in claim volumes in recent years and makes the ongoing increase in insurance premiums impossible to justify.
The Alliance added that “although the report finds an increase in cases being resolved at the Injuries Board (going from 48% to 50%), we need to see this number continue to increase further, as there are still too many cases being settled via litigation. Litigation adds greatly, and often unnecessarily, to the cost of claims and ultimately the premiums people have to pay.
“The Government needs to safeguard and promote the Injuries Board as the fairest and fastest means of settling claims.”
High-cost claims still going through litigation route, says Insurance Ireland
Insurance Ireland has welcomed the lower claims but said there are still high-cost claims going through the litigated route that account for the “vast majority”.
Moyagh Murdock, Chief Executive of the group representing insurers, said: “We believe far too few claims are currently being settled via the Injuries Resolution Board route, with the vast majority going through costly litigation.
“This is despite any real advantage to the claimant, who is likely receiving a similar award following a much lengthier process, with each litigated case incurring very high legal costs which will ultimately be borne by consumers.”
Ms Murdock pointed to the Central Bank’s National Claims Information Database report for 2023, which she said “shows that the length of time to settle through litigation is almost six years versus just over two years through the Injuries Resolution Board”.
“The Injuries Resolution Board is highly effective, but unfortunately it is dealing with too few claims,” she says.
The Insurance Ireland CEO added that “uncertainty over the Judicial Council’s proposed 16.7% increase in the Personal Injuries Guidelines” could “erode the progress made by the Government’s Insurance Reform agenda and may prove counter-productive in terms of encouraging further competition in the Irish insurance market”.
Article Source – Small rise in claims submitted to injuries board in 2024 – RTE
