Personal injury payouts have halved since 2020

Personal injury payouts have nearly halved following the introduction of new judicial guidelines last year.

According to a new report by the Personal Injuries Assessment Board (PIAB), the average award is now €13,825 compared with €24,000 in 2020.

The Minister of State for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation, Robert Troy, says that the findings in the report are evidence that the Personal Injury Guidelines are having a positive impact.

"The Personal Injury Guidelines were just one measure brought forward under the government’s Action Plan for Insurance Reform, and I thank PIAB for their continued analysis of awards levels since their introduction in April. We can see that 20% of awards are now under €5,000, and 29% are between €5,000 and €10,000 meaning 49% of awards are now under €10,000. This compares to just 12% in 2020. 72% of awards are now €15,000 or less compared to just 30% of PIAB awards in 2020.

"It is evident that the guidelines are continuing to have an impact and while this progress is welcome, I am committed to progressing a programme of legislative reform to strengthen PIAB. Legislation which I published in February will give more powers and responsibilities to the board to facilitate an increase in the number of personal injury claims that may be resolved through it and without recourse to litigation. As part of its expanded remit it will play an important role in information analysis and conduct awareness campaigns to inform public audiences of the benefits of settling through the Board.

"Pre-legislative scrutiny of this legislation by the Joint Committee commenced on March 30. I am determined to progress this legislation to enactment in 2022. I am confident that these reforms will increase the number of personal injury claims resolved through the PIAB process which offers a faster and more cost-effective resolution of personal injuries claims than litigation."