Committee Chair welcomes Office of Fair Trading report

• Transport Committtee
• Inquiry page: Cost of motor insurance

Responding to publication by the Office of Fair Trading of its market study examining the private motor insurance sector, Chair of the Transport Committee, Louise Ellman MP, said today,

“ I welcome this report which follows on directly from the work the Transport Committee started with our Autumn 2010 inquiry into the escalating cost of car insurance.

“ The OFT’s provisional decision to refer the highly dysfunctional UK market in private motor insurance and related goods or services to the Competition Commission for full investigation is a major step forward.
 
“Like the OFT, we found evidence to support the view that various features of the private motor insurance market prevent, restrict or distort adequate competition in ways that do not deliver a fair deal to motorists.

“I will propose to the Transport Committee that we participate in the consultation announced today to make the strongest possible case for the referral. 

“I now expect car insurers and the other firms involved to co-operate fully with all stages of this process. “I look forward to the Competition Commission driving a process of market reform that will start to deliver a fair deal for motorists. However, this investigation will only tackle part of the problem created by the way in which many insurers, claims management firms, solicitors and others exploit every opportunity to generate revenues through referral fees and personal injury claims that inflate the premiums all motorists have to pay.”

Notes for editors

Transport Committee reports on the cost of motor insurance are:
The cost of motor insurance, 4th report 2010-12, HC 591, published March 2011, http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201011/cmselect/cmtran/591/591.pdf
Cost of motor insurance: follow-up, 12th Report, 2010-12, HC 1451, published January 2012, http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201012/cmselect/cmtran/1451/1451.pdf
The Government replies to these reports can be found at http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201012/cmselect/cmtran/1466/1466.pdf and http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201012/cmselect/cmtran/1934/1934.pdf
The Office of Fair Trading report can be found at  http://www.oft.gov.uk/OFTwork/markets-work/motor-insurance/