Firms will fold over lack of PI cover Law Society warns
The Irish Law Society has warned that firms will be forced out of business due to professional indemnity (PI) insurance premiums more than doubling, the Irish Examiner reports.
The deadline for getting insurance for the 2,200 firms was 1 December.
Last year, professional indemnity insurance was available for a single practicing solicitor for about €8,000. That figure is expected to have risen to as much as €24,000 for the next year.
Increasing claims
Director general of the Law Society, Ken Murphy, said: "All insurance companies are a lot more cautious in terms of general risk. They have made losses like everybody else in the current climate and look much more closely at claims.
"The downturn has led to an increase in the number of claims and the cost of claims in terms of property. Insurance companies are telling us they are making unsustainable losses and that’s now being passed on.”
The Irish have suspended the assigned risk pool, which provides for insurers of last resort.
"It’s likely that some firms will be unable to pay the premium and be pushed over the edge and become uneconomical," Murphy said.
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