From:-
Motor Insurance Justice Action Group (MIJAG)
C/O 78 Whitechurch Way,
Dublin 16.
17-September-2001
To:-
Eddie Shaw,
Chairman of the National Safety Council,
4 Northbrook Road, Ranelagh, Dublin 6.
Dear Mr Shaw,
Following recent media coverage where you appear to come out against
the lowering of insurance premiums for young drivers, MIJAG would like
a meeting with the NSC to discuss the following points.
MIJAG believes that he NSC have a very important role to play in solving
the problem of over priced motor insurance for young drivers and clearly
there is an opportunity while this debate is raging to have some safety
initiatives brought forward. However, a combination of ad campaigns
on drink driving that features only YOUNG DRIVERS, seat belt wearing
that features only YOUNG DRIVERS and speeding that features only YOUNG
DRIVERS plus some other SHOCK tactics by the NSC have alienated the
very group that you are trying to influence. MIJAG is concerned that
Directors of AXA/PMPA the company that has most to lose when the insurance
issue for young drivers is resolved dominate the key NSC Road Safety
Committee and sponsor in full their ad campaigns. AXA/PMPA are coming
under huge pressure in the marketplace from Hibernian who are agreeing
to insure young drivers at half the going rate and still make money.
AXA/PMPA are in our opinion using their links with the NSC for Propaganda
purposes in the battle by ourselves and others to have premiums lowered
and if possible tightly regulated.
MIJAG have written to the NSC in the past highlighting the error of
your continued assertion that 1,000 of this years 66,000 Leaving Cert
students will be dead in eight years time from road accidents. If this
were accurate it means that already this year approximately 100 of that
group must have been killed, plus the 100 from last years group and
the other six groups that are still under 25. Therefore 800 people between
the ages of 17 and 25 should have died already this year from road accidents
equal to almost three times the actual overall total. Clearly the NSC
are having trouble understanding the facts and they should stop using
this inaccurate but sexy soundbite.
You are correct when you say that lack of experience is the single biggest
problem. In-experience drivers the world over regardless of age cause
more road accidents. Many countries have found effective solutions to
this problem, including having driving as part of the school curriculum
in Sweden or in many parts of the US allowing drivers only very restricted
use of a car during the first six months while they learn to drive safely.
The Irish solution of pricing people off the road is just simply avoiding
the problem and discriminates against the young driver.
In any event there is not a clear link between the cost of motor insurance
and accidents figures. Most people's insurance went up 20% this year
while the accident figure remain stable. Dublin has the most expensive
car insurance but by far the lowest road accident death rate in the
country according to the National Roads Authority (NRA). Road accident
figure have been dropping for the past 20 years in Ireland but insurance
has been increasing. Therefore we suggest the NSC stick to dealing with
road safety and leave the economics of motor insurance to the Motor
Insurance Advisory Board who have been investigating this question for
the past four years.
MIJAG has argued that first time drivers be charged the average premium
when starting to drive and treated as being safe drivers until they
prove otherwise. Leading academics including Ray Fuller from Trinity
support the use of insurance premiums to give incentives for safe behaviour
on the road.
Regards,
Mick Murphy (National Organiser of MIJAG)
