Commission sends letter of formal notice to Ireland regarding the transposition of the Motor Insurance Directive

The European Commission is sending letters of formal notice to 16 Member States (Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Ireland, Greece, Spain, Cyprus, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia) for failure to notify the Commission of the complete transposition of the Motor Insurance Directive by the deadline of 22 June 2023.

Directive 2009/103/EC on motor insurance, as amended by Directive (EU) 2021/2118, sets up a mechanism to compensate victims of road traffic accidents in case of insolvency of the responsible insurer. To that end, the Member States are to appoint compensation bodies that will deal with claims stemming from these accidents. For cross-border cases, the Directive envisages that these compensation bodies conclude an agreement on the settlement arrangements among themselves by 23 December 2023.

The Member States were to appoint these bodies by 23 June 2023, or at least communicate to the Commission entities that would negotiate this agreement for the time being.

The 16 Member States now have two months to reply to the letters of formal notice and complete their transposition, or the Commission may decide to issue a reasoned opinion.

Further information

Directive 2009/103/EC relating to insurance against civil liability in respect of the use of motor vehicles, and the enforcement of the obligation to insure against such liability

Directive (EU) 2021/2118 relating to insurance against civil liability in respect of the use of motor vehicles, and the enforcement of the obligation to insure against such liability