A six-year history of exits

Data from the ministry of finance have shown that almost 250 insurance companies have left the Irish market over the past six years.

Since 2014, the licences of 12 life and 42 non-life insurers who had head offices or branches in the country were revoked. A further 194 life and non-life insurers who were operating under EU rules that allow them the freedom to provide services in another member state have also pulled out.

117 or 47 percent of the almost 250 companies that have ceased offering services here left in the past two years alone, according to the data supplied to Fianna Fáil’s finance spokesman, Michael McGrath.

“As more and more firms leave the Irish market, consumers are the ones to lose out,” McGrath said.

“Less competition and choice means consumers end up paying more for insurance and, in some cases, are unable to obtain cover at all in the area of public liability.”

In his response minister of finance Paschal Donohoe pointed out that the figures do not show the number of entrants into the Irish market for those years.

But he acknowledged that nonetheless, the data does suggest that there has been an increased trend for non-life companies operating on a freedom of services basis to leave the Irish market, particularly between the years 2017 and 2019.

“There may be a number of factors related to this, including undoubtedly smaller operators not seeking to continue to do business because of requirements to seek a new authorisation as a result of the decision of the UK to exit the EU,” said Donohoe to RTE.