Injuries Resolution Board saved claimants €76m in legal costs last year while awarding €168m in compensation
It awarded €168m in compensation last year, it said, after releasing its annual report for 2024.
For the most part, the IRB does not pay legal costs, despite most claimants using it being represented by a solicitor.
It said it had 20,837 claims last year, up 3pc on 2023. This was 33pc lower than the 2019 level.
It attributed the 3pc rise to the fact that last year was the first full year in which Garda Compensation Scheme claims came under its remit.
The huge fall in the number of payouts approved by the board last year compared with 2019 is largely due to the near 40pc drop in the average value of personal injury awards after the Personal Injuries Guidelines were introduced in 2021.
A proposal from judges to increase the award levels by 17pc was referred by the Cabinet yesterday to a sub-group on insurance reform.
The €168m paid by the IRB last year was down 39pc from the 2019 figure of €275m.
The typical, or median, award was €13,100. This is up 12pc on 2023, but 29pc lower than in 2020.
Acceptance rates, where both parties agree to an IRB assessment, grew again, to 50pc last year, up from 48pc in 2023.
If a settlement offer from the board is not accepted by the claimant or the insurer, it goes to litigation unless it is settled by the insurer.
The median motor liability award agreed by the board last year was €12,500, down €5,400 on the 2020 figure.
The IRB, formerly known as the Personal Injuries Assessment Board, deals with road traffic, public liability and workplace personal injury claims.
The longer a claim lasted before being resolved, the higher the legal fees
Most claims have to go to it first, and can go to court only if an assessment by the IRB is rejected by either side. The longer a claim lasted before being resolved, the higher the legal fees, the board said.
Enterprise Minister Peter Burke said the annual report demonstrates how the IRB's model continues to deliver significant benefits.
'I want to commend the board for its ongoing work, which last year alone generated savings of €76m in avoided legal costs,' he said.
IRB chief executive Rosalind Carroll said that in the 20-year existence of the board, 'more than €1.2bn was saved in avoided legal costs as a direct result of claims being resolved through the board, with €76m alone saved in 2024'.
She said the IRB exists to offer an alternative to litigation to provide a fair, impartial, non-adversarial route to resolve injury claims.
The Alliance for Insurance Reform welcomed the fall in the number and value of claims, but said policy-holders were not benefiting from this.
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