The American Chamber of Commerce in Ireland has expressed concern at the cost of insurance for businesses in Ireland.
According to a recent survey of American Chamber members, 75% of respondents said that their largest cost increase over the past 12 months had been their insurance premiums. One member had seen insurance costs increase 100% in the past two years, while others cited annual increases in premiums of 20%.
"For most businesses in this country, insurance is second only to the wage bill," said Joanne Richardson, chief executive of the American Chamber. "However, insurance is a bottom line cost which has no relationship to business performance. It is an annual cost which for many businesses it is not possible to pass on to their customers and therefore significantly erodes their competitiveness."
Ms. Richardson was speaking at a Lunch hosted by the American Chamber and Eircom in Cork today.
The luncheon was also addressed by Dorothea Dowling, chairperson of the Motor Insurance Assessment Board (MIAB) and Chairperson of the Interim Personal Injuries Assessment Board. Ms Dowling said that progress was being made on the high cost of insurance.
"In motor insurance for example, the Government published its action Plan on 25th October 2002, to implement the 67 MIAB recommendations," said Ms Dowling. "As demonstrated from CSO figures, the rate of motor insurance inflation then started to reduce in June 2003 and every month since - for the first time ever."
