PIAB to offer a better deal to the public
Press Release 7th September 2004
PIAB to offer a better deal to the public
"PIAB is going to make an enormous difference in reducing...insurance costs"
Addressing the Small Firm's Association Annual Conference in Dublin Castle the Chief Executive of the Personal Injuries Assessment Board (PIAB) Patricia Byron spoke today about the PIAB being "at the forefront of a radical and historic change in the way Personal Injury claims are handled in this country."
PIAB was established this year to reduce the costs of delivering compensation to victims of negligent accidents. PIAB commenced operations in June 2004 and extended its remit from 22nd July 2004 to cover all personal injury claims (apart from those involving medical negligence).
Describing the old method of handling personal injury claims as unsustainable and inefficient Byron outlined to the audience that PIAB has exceeded all its targets to date and signalled that the first PIAB awards would be made by year end.
The majority of PIAB awards will take six to nine months to make. "In the past claimants could have waited three or four years to finalise their case" said Byron - adding that PIAB will benefit society as a whole by helping reduce the cost of insurance. She illustrated the cost reductions possible under PIAB by saying that in the past a typical compensation award of €20,000 would incur overhead costs of approximately €8,000 - €10,000 but under PIAB these costs would be slashed to approximately €1,000. Such savings would translate into cheaper insurance for everyone.
Byron announced some initial statistics relating to PIAB's first 3 months of operation but cautioned about their interpretation on the basis that an estimated 6,000 plus cases had been rushed down the litigation route in advance of PIAB becoming operational. She also hinted that some of these cases may end up with PIAB as legislation allows PIAB to deal with certain cases where proceedings have already been initiated. These "ad hoc" cases can be pulled out of the litigation route at any stage by mutual agreement of both parties and brought into the PIAB process.
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