he Injuries Resolution Board has begun a mediation service for public-liability personal-injury claims, as well as employer-liability injury claims.
Dara Calleary (Minister of State for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation), who holds responsibility for the board, said that the move was part of a push for insurance reform.          
      

Strong response

He said that there had been a very strong initial response to mediation for workplace-accident claims, with uptake by almost 40% of claimants.

“Mediation is an effective way of resolving disputes quickly and in a cost-effective manner. It helps both claimants and respondents to reach a mutual agreement and provides an alternative to litigation, which can be costly, time consuming, and stressful for all involved,” the minister said.

Mediation can address a broader range of issues than those currently considered in the board’s assessment service.

These include:

• Claim value,
• Extent of injury, and
• Contributory negligence. 

Mediation also allows the board to consider cases where liability is not agreed, which it could not do previously.

“This represents a step change in the work of the board as it allows it to take on a significant number of new cases, thereby increasing the substantial savings that it has already achieved against the costs of litigation through its work,” Minister Calleary said.

Supreme Court ruling

“The recent Supreme Court judgment in the Delaney case confirmed that the Personal Injuries Guidelines are legally binding and have been correctly applied by the Injuries Resolution Board,” he added.

This will move towards a more “consistent, certain, and predictable system for personal injury compensation in this country,” he stated.

The current consent rate to board-assessment of cases is 70%, while the acceptance rate of assessed awards has gone up from 36% in mid-2021 to 50% this year. 

The minister said that he would commence legislation to provide for mediation for motor-liability personal-injury cases later this year.

In its 20 years of existence the board has received around 500,000 cases, which have resulted in almost 180,000 awards in accepted assessments. 

The total value of those awards is approximately €2 billion.