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Judges propose 16.7% rise in PI awards

A committee of the Judicial Council has proposed an overall increase of 16.7% in damages to be awarded for personal injuries. 

The judges’ body is required to review the Personal Injuries Guidelines, which were first adopted in 2021, every three years. 

The draft proposals from the committee were approved by the board of the Judicial Council in October and will be considered by the full council before the end of January. 

They will then be referred to the Minister for Justice and must then be approved by the Oireachtas. 

National and global inflation 

The board amended the proposed increase from an initial 15.6% to 16.7% to take account of updated inflation figures.  

Overall, the initial guidelines resulted in a reduction in the damages available in lower and moderate injuries, while giving those suffering catastrophic injuries a modest uplift in their award of general damages. 

The committee carrying out the review said that it considered economic factors, court decisions, and awards in Ireland and other jurisdictions. 

It noted that “significant global and national inflation” had occurred over the previous three years. 

‘Few award decisions’ 

The committee also noted the jurisprudence of the Superior Courts that had emerged in the period “regarding the proper approach to the assessment of damages in multiple-injuries cases”. 

The judges added, however, that they could not carry out any meaningful analysis of the quantum of court awards given under the guidelines. 

“This is because the inevitable delay between the commencement of proceedings to which the then new guidelines applied and their trial has meant few award decisions have been reached – certainly not enough to be statistically significant,” the committee stated.