🏭 Commercial General Insurance (CIP-04)

1. Before recommending a commercial insurance policy to a business client, the Central Bank's Consumer Protection Code requires the retail intermediary to first do which of the following?

1. Obtain the client's audited accounts for the previous five years
2. Issue cover on a provisional basis pending later verification
3. Gather sufficient information about the client's business and needs through a fact-find
4. Refer the client directly to the insurer's underwriting department

The Consumer Protection Code's suitability rules require intermediaries to gather enough information about the client's circumstances (a fact-find) before recommending a suitable product; issuing provisional cover, relying on accounts alone, or referring to underwriting without this fails the 'know your client' requirement. (Central Bank of Ireland, Consumer Protection Code — edition in force (CPC 2025, effective 24/03/2026), 'Knowing the Consumer and Suitability' (fact-find requirements).)

2. Under the Central Bank's Consumer Protection Code, an incorporated body with an annual turnover of €3 million or less is treated as a 'consumer'. A limited company client had turnover of €2.4 million in its last financial year and is seeking commercial property and liability cover. How is this client generally treated for the purposes of the Code's protections?

1. As a consumer, since its turnover is below the threshold set for incorporated bodies
2. As a consumer only if it employs fewer than ten staff
3. As excluded from the Code, because it is an incorporated body
4. As a consumer only where the policy is arranged directly with the insurer

The Code extends 'consumer' status to incorporated bodies with turnover of 3 million euro or less in the previous financial year, so a company with 2.4m turnover qualifies; the test is turnover-based, not headcount or distribution channel. (Central Bank of Ireland, Consumer Protection Code — edition in force (CPC 2025, effective 24/03/2026), definition of 'consumer'; Consumer Insurance Contracts Act 2019, s.2 (€3m turnover).)

3. Under the Central Bank's Consumer Protection Code, an incorporated body is treated as a 'consumer' only where its annual turnover is €3 million or less. A manufacturing company had turnover of €4.5 million last year and wants to arrange employers' liability cover. Because its turnover exceeds this threshold, which consequence follows?

1. The firm must instead be insured under a personal lines policy
2. The firm falls outside the Code's definition of 'consumer' and so does not receive its consumer-specific protections
3. The firm is automatically refused commercial insurance cover
4. The intermediary is exempt from the Minimum Competency Code when advising it

Once turnover exceeds the 3 million euro threshold, an incorporated body no longer meets the Code's definition of 'consumer', so the Code's consumer-specific protections do not apply; the firm can still be advised and insured commercially, and the adviser's competency obligations continue to apply. (Central Bank of Ireland, Consumer Protection Code — edition in force (CPC 2025, effective 24/03/2026), definition of 'consumer' (turnover threshold); Consumer Insurance Contracts Act 2019, s.2.)

4. A sole trader arranging insurance in a personal/consumer capacity answers the insurer's proposal questions honestly and with reasonable care but does not think to mention an unrelated fact the insurer never asked about. Under the Consumer Insurance Contracts Act 2019, what is the legal position?

1. The policy is voidable because the sole trader failed the duty of utmost good faith
2. The insurer may cancel automatically for any factual omission, regardless of materiality
3. The sole trader must additionally complete a statutory declaration of full disclosure
4. The sole trader has met the disclosure duty, since consumers no longer have to volunteer material facts

Section 8 of the 2019 Act abolished the consumer's duty to volunteer material facts, replacing it with a duty to answer the insurer's questions honestly and with reasonable care, so this proposer has complied. (Consumer Insurance Contracts Act 2019, s.8.)

5. A retail chain with turnover well above the Consumer Protection Code's incorporated-body threshold is arranging a commercial combined policy. Its facilities manager fails to mention a recent change of use at one premises, although the insurer never specifically asked about it. Which duty governs this situation?

1. No pre-contractual disclosure duty applies once a policy has incepted
2. The Consumer Insurance Contracts Act 2019 duty to answer questions only
3. The common law duty of utmost good faith, requiring disclosure of material facts even if not asked
4. The 20-working-day renewal notification duty under the 2019 Act

The 2019 Act's lighter disclosure duty applies only to consumers; a large commercial policyholder outside that definition remains subject to the pre-existing common law duty of utmost good faith, requiring material facts to be volunteered even without a specific question. (Consumer Insurance Contracts Act 2019, s.8 (scope limited to consumers); common law duty of utmost good faith for non-consumer contracts.)

6. Under the rules transposing the Insurance Distribution Directive into Irish law, before a commercial policy is concluded, an insurance intermediary must specify which of the following to the client?

1. The demands and needs of the customer, based on information obtained from them
2. The intermediary's total commission earned across all clients that year
3. A full list of every insurer's product terms in the market
4. The claims history of every other client in the same trade sector

The Directive requires intermediaries to specify the customer's demands and needs before conclusion of a contract, so the recommendation is tailored to that client; commission totals and competitors' market-wide terms are not part of this requirement. (European Union (Insurance Distribution) Regulations 2018 (transposing Directive (EU) 2016/97) - demands-and-needs requirement.)

7. A broker is completing a fact-find for a new manufacturing client seeking a commercial combined policy. Which piece of information is most directly relevant to assessing the suitability of the sums insured proposed for the client's stock and machinery?

1. The number of company directors listed on the company's public filings
2. The client's preferred method of premium payment
3. The client's corporate logo and marketing materials
4. The current replacement/reinstatement value of the stock and machinery at risk

Suitability of sums insured depends on an accurate current valuation of the property at risk, since under-insurance can lead to a proportionate claim reduction under the condition of average; director numbers, payment method and marketing materials do not inform valuation. (Principle of indemnity and the condition of average (under-insurance leading to a proportionate claim reduction); standard commercial combined policy wording.)

8. Under the Central Bank's Consumer Protection Code, for how long must a regulated firm generally retain records relevant to a consumer, including fact-find and suitability documentation?

1. At least 12 months
2. At least 6 years
3. At least 2 years
4. Indefinitely, with no minimum period specified

The Consumer Protection Code requires records supporting the suitability of advice to be retained for a minimum of 6 years; the shorter periods listed and an unspecified indefinite duty do not reflect the Code's actual minimum. (Central Bank of Ireland, Consumer Protection Code — edition in force (CPC 2025, effective 24/03/2026), record-keeping requirements (6-year retention).)

9. A large commercial client, which does not meet the Consumer Protection Code's definition of consumer, is due to renew its property policy. Does the 20-working-day renewal notification requirement in the Consumer Insurance Contracts Act 2019 apply to this renewal?

1. Yes, because it applies to every commercial policy regardless of client size
2. Yes, but only for property policies with business interruption extensions
3. No, because that statutory renewal notice requirement is confined to consumer insurance contracts
4. No, because renewal notices were abolished for all policies by the 2019 Act

The 2019 Act's renewal notification rule, including the 20-working-day requirement, applies to consumer insurance contracts; a large commercial client outside that definition is not covered by this specific statutory requirement. (Consumer Insurance Contracts Act 2019, ss.12 and 14 (scope: consumer contracts).)

10. In the context of a proposal for commercial insurance, a 'material fact' is generally described as one that would do what?

1. Influence the judgement of a prudent insurer in assessing the risk and terms
2. Change the client's own opinion of the insurer's reputation
3. Appear in the client's most recent set of audited accounts
4. Relate only to facts the client considers embarrassing

The established test for materiality is whether a fact would influence the judgement of a prudent underwriter assessing the risk and terms; the client's personal views, accounts content or embarrassment are not the legal test. (Common law 'prudent insurer' test for materiality, as applied in insurance contract law.)

11. A client's stated business activity on the fact-find is 'retail shop,' but during a site visit the adviser learns the client also carries out light assembly of goods on the same premises. What should the adviser do before recommending a policy?

1. Recommend the cheapest available retail-only policy to save the client money
2. Ignore the extra activity, since the original fact-find was completed in good faith
3. Advise the client that the assembly activity cannot be disclosed until the first renewal
4. Update the fact-find to reflect the assembly activity and ensure the recommended cover extends to it

Suitability depends on an accurate, current picture of the client's activities; an unrecorded activity could leave a coverage gap or ground a later non-disclosure dispute, so the fact-find and recommendation must be updated first. (Central Bank of Ireland, Consumer Protection Code — edition in force (CPC 2025), 'Knowing the Consumer and Suitability' (accurate, current fact-find).)

12. During a fact-find, a client tells the adviser its annual wage roll is 'roughly 500,000 euro,' but the client's most recent accounts, provided separately, show payroll costs of 850,000 euro. What is the most appropriate next step for the adviser before using a wage roll figure to arrange employers' liability cover?

1. Use the lower figure quoted verbally, since it came directly from the client
2. Query the discrepancy with the client and use the verified figure to set the basis of cover
3. Average the two figures and use the midpoint for the policy
4. Proceed with the accounts figure without informing the client of the discrepancy

Where client information conflicts with other evidence, suitability obligations require the adviser to query and resolve the discrepancy rather than silently pick, average, or use an unconfirmed figure, since wage roll materially affects the basis and adequacy of cover. (Central Bank of Ireland, Consumer Protection Code — edition in force (CPC 2025), suitability and know-your-client obligations; wage roll as the basis of employers' liability cover (standard policy rating basis).)

13. In Ireland, is it a legal requirement for an employer to hold employers' liability insurance?

1. No, there is no statutory requirement, although employers owe common-law and statutory duties of care
2. Yes, under an Act equivalent to the UK's Employers' Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969
3. Yes, but only for employers with more than 50 staff
4. No, because employer negligence claims were abolished by the Personal Injuries Guidelines

Ireland, unlike the UK, has no statutory requirement to hold employers' liability insurance; employers nonetheless owe duties of care under common law and legislation such as the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005. (Contrast with UK Employers' Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969; Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 (Irish employer duties of care; no compulsory EL insurance in Ireland).)

14. Under section 8 of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, an employer's duty to ensure the safety, health and welfare of employees is qualified by which standard?

1. To an absolute and unqualified standard
2. Only where the employee has fewer than five years' service
3. So far as is reasonably practicable
4. Only in respect of activities carried out on the employer's own premises

Section 8 imposes the duty 'so far as is reasonably practicable', a qualified rather than absolute standard, which underpins the negligence-based exposure that employers' liability insurance responds to. (Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, s.8.)

15. An employee suffers a back injury while lifting stock during the course of employment, alleging that proper lifting equipment was not provided. Which class of insurance is designed to respond to the resulting liability claim?

1. Business interruption insurance
2. Directors' and officers' liability insurance
3. Public liability insurance
4. Employers' liability insurance

Employers' liability insurance indemnifies an employer against legal liability for bodily injury suffered by its own employee arising out of and in the course of employment due to the employer's negligence; the other classes cover unrelated exposures or non-employee third parties. (Principle of employers' liability cover: indemnity for the employer's legal liability for employee bodily injury arising out of and in the course of employment; Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.)

16. A customer visiting a client's shop slips on a wet floor and is injured; the shop's own staff are unaffected. Under which class of the client's commercial insurance would this claim most naturally fall to be considered?

1. Employers' liability, because the incident occurred on the employer's premises
2. Public liability, reflecting the occupier's common duty of care to visitors
3. Product liability, because the floor surface was a manufactured product
4. Business interruption, because trading may be disrupted

A non-employee visitor's injury engages the occupier's common duty of care to visitors under the Occupiers' Liability Act 1995, insured under public liability; employers' liability responds only to claims by the insured's own employees, so the premises location alone does not make it an EL matter. (Occupiers' Liability Act 1995 (common duty of care to visitors); general principle distinguishing public liability (third parties) from employers' liability (own employees).)

17. Under the Occupiers' Liability Act 1995, into how many categories are entrants onto premises divided for the purpose of determining the duty of care owed, a distinction relevant to separating public liability exposures from an employer's liability to its own staff?

1. Three: visitors, recreational users, and trespassers
2. Two: invitees and licensees
3. Four: employees, visitors, contractors, and trespassers
4. Five, graded by the entrant's age

The 1995 Act divides entrants into visitors (owed the common duty of care), recreational users, and trespassers (both owed a lower duty); the older invitee/licensee split and the other groupings listed are not the categories used by this Act. (Occupiers' Liability Act 1995 (as amended).)

18. A newly qualified adviser assumes that Ireland operates a centralised database for tracing historic employers' liability insurers, similar to an arrangement that exists in the UK market. Is this assumption correct?

1. Yes, it operates under the same name and rules as the UK scheme
2. Yes, but only for claims arising after 2004
3. No, no equivalent UK-style employers' liability tracing arrangement operates in the Irish market
4. Yes, it is operated by the Motor Insurers' Bureau of Ireland

The UK's employers' liability tracing arrangement has no direct Irish equivalent; confusing Irish and UK arrangements is a common error, and the MIBI is a separate body dealing with uninsured/untraced motor claims, not EL tracing. (Irish market practice contrasted with the UK Employers' Liability Tracing Office arrangement (no direct Irish equivalent); Motor Insurers' Bureau of Ireland (separate body, motor claims only).)

19. The old common law defence under which an employer could avoid liability for an employee's injury caused by the negligence of a fellow employee (the doctrine of common employment) was abolished in Ireland by which piece of legislation?

1. The Personal Injuries Assessment Board Act 2003
2. The Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004
3. The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005
4. The Law Reform (Personal Injuries) Act 1958

The Law Reform (Personal Injuries) Act 1958 abolished the common employment defence in Ireland, removing a historic bar to employee claims arising from a co-worker's negligence; the other Acts deal with claims assessment procedure and general workplace safety duties, not this defence. (Law Reform (Personal Injuries) Act 1958 (Ireland).)

20. An employee is injured partly due to the employer's negligence and partly due to the employee's own failure to follow a safety instruction. Under the Civil Liability Act 1961, how is the employee's damages award typically affected?

1. The claim is barred entirely, regardless of the employer's share of fault
2. The damages are reduced in proportion to the employee's share of fault
3. The employee's damages are automatically doubled as a deterrent
4. The claim must be withdrawn and resubmitted as a workplace dispute

The Civil Liability Act 1961 provides for apportionment of damages according to each party's degree of fault, so contributory negligence reduces rather than automatically extinguishes or inflates the award. (Civil Liability Act 1961, s.34 (contributory negligence apportionment).)

21. An employee intends to bring a personal injury claim against their employer following a workplace accident. Before court proceedings can generally issue, to which body must the claim first be submitted?

1. The Injuries Resolution Board
2. The Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman
3. The Central Bank of Ireland
4. The Health Insurance Authority

Most personal injury claims, including workplace injury claims, must first be submitted to the Injuries Resolution Board (formerly PIAB) for assessment before court proceedings can issue; the FSPO, Central Bank and HIA deal with unrelated matters. (Personal Injuries Assessment Board Act 2003, as amended; rebranded as the Injuries Resolution Board under the Personal Injuries Resolution Board Act 2022.)

22. An employee claims that a workplace injury was mismanaged by the employer's occupational health nurse, amounting to clinical negligence in the treatment provided. Does this claim need to be first submitted to the Injuries Resolution Board?

1. Yes, all workplace-related claims without exception must go to the Board first
2. No, because occupational health claims are handled exclusively by the Health Insurance Authority
3. No, alleged medical/clinical negligence claims are the principal exception to the requirement to apply to the Board first
4. Yes, but only if the claim also involves a public liability element

The requirement to apply to the Injuries Resolution Board before litigation has a principal exception for claims involving alleged medical/clinical negligence, which can proceed directly to court; the Health Insurance Authority has no role in personal injury claims handling. (Personal Injuries Assessment Board Act 2003 (medical negligence exception).)

23. Within how long of the date of accrual of the cause of action (or date of knowledge, if later) must a personal injury action generally be commenced in Ireland?

1. One year
2. Six years
3. Three years
4. Two years

The general limitation period for personal injury actions is two years from accrual or date of knowledge, whichever is later; the other periods listed apply to other classes of claim, not the standard personal injury period. (Statute of Limitations (Amendment) Act 1991, as amended by the Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004, s.7.)

24. The Personal Injuries Guidelines, which courts and the Injuries Resolution Board must have regard to when assessing general damages, replaced which earlier instrument?

1. The Consumer Protection Code
2. The Book of Quantum
3. The Minimum Competency Code
4. The Solvency II framework

The Personal Injuries Guidelines, adopted by the Judicial Council and effective from 24 April 2021, replaced the Book of Quantum as the reference for assessing general damages; the other instruments are unrelated conduct or prudential codes. (Personal Injuries Guidelines adopted by the Judicial Council under the Judicial Council Act 2019.)

25. An employee is injured as a passenger in the employer's van when a fellow employee, driving in the course of employment, negligently causes a road traffic accident. The employer is alleged to be vicariously liable for the driver's negligence. Which policy would typically respond to this liability, rather than the employer's general employers' liability policy?

1. The employer's commercial motor insurance policy, since liability arising from vehicle use is generally excluded from employers' liability cover
2. The employers' liability policy, since the injury occurred in the course of employment
3. The public liability policy, since the incident occurred on a public road
4. No policy responds, since compulsory motor insurance covers third parties only, not employees

Employers' liability policies generally exclude liability arising from the use of motor vehicles where compulsory motor insurance is required, so that exposure sits with the commercial motor policy, under which an injured employee-passenger is a covered third party. (Road Traffic Act 1961 (compulsory motor insurance for vehicle use); standard employers' liability policy wording excluding liability for which compulsory motor insurance is required.)

26. Under the Road Traffic Act 1961 (as amended), it is a criminal offence to use a mechanically propelled vehicle in a public place in Ireland unless which minimum level of insurance cover is in force?

1. A comprehensive policy covering own damage, fire and theft
2. A third-party, fire and theft policy with a named-driver restriction
3. An approved policy providing at least third-party cover
4. A cover note issued by a licensed insurance intermediary

Section 56 of the Road Traffic Act 1961 requires at least an approved third-party policy; comprehensive or third-party-fire-and-theft cover exceed, rather than define, the legal minimum. (Road Traffic Act 1961, s.56 (as amended))

27. For a compulsory motor policy in Ireland, what is the position on the level of third-party cover for death or bodily injury compared with third-party property damage?

1. Death or bodily injury cover must be unlimited, while property damage cover has a statutory minimum of €1,300,000 per accident
2. Both death/bodily injury and property damage cover are capped at €1,300,000 per accident
3. Death or bodily injury cover is capped at €6,450,000 per accident, with property damage cover unlimited
4. Property damage cover must be unlimited, while death or bodily injury cover has a statutory minimum of €1,300,000 per victim

Irish law requires unlimited personal injury cover, with a statutory floor of €1,300,000 per accident for property damage; the other options invert or wrongly cap these figures. (Road Traffic Act 1961 (as amended); EU (Motor Insurance) Regulations transposing Directive 2009/103/EC as amended by Directive (EU) 2021/2118)

28. Directive (EU) 2021/2118, which amends the Motor Insurance Directive, sets harmonised EU minimum guarantee amounts for personal injury arising from motor accidents. What are these minimum amounts?

1. €6,450,000 per injured party, or €1,300,000 per claim irrespective of the number of victims
2. €1,300,000 per injured party, or €6,450,000 per claim irrespective of the number of victims
3. €1,300,000 per claim, with no separate limit per injured party
4. €6,450,000 per injured party, with no aggregate limit per claim

The Directive sets the EU floor at €1,300,000 per injured party or €6,450,000 per claim regardless of the number of victims; the first option simply reverses the two figures. (Directive (EU) 2021/2118 amending Directive 2009/103/EC)

29. A road traffic accident in Ireland injures five people under a single motor policy that provides exactly the cover required by Irish law for a compulsory motor policy. What is the maximum amount available to meet the combined personal injury claims of the five victims?

1. €6,450,000 in total, being the EU Directive's aggregate minimum per claim
2. €1,300,000 per victim, subject to an overall cap of €6,450,000
3. €1,300,000 in total, shared proportionately among the five victims
4. There is no upper limit, as compulsory personal injury cover in Ireland must be unlimited

Irish statutory motor cover for personal injury must be unlimited, which exceeds the EU Directive's €6,450,000-per-claim floor; the other options mistakenly apply the EU minimum as if it were the Irish domestic requirement. (Road Traffic Act 1961 (as amended); Directive (EU) 2021/2118)

30. A commercial vehicle causes €1,450,000 of third-party property damage in a single accident, with no personal injury. The fleet policy provides exactly the Irish statutory minimum required for a compulsory motor policy. How much of this property damage loss is covered under that statutory minimum?

1. €1,300,000, being the statutory minimum per accident, leaving €150,000 uninsured under the compulsory element
2. €1,450,000 in full, since property damage cover must always match the actual loss
3. €725,000, being half of the loss shared between insurer and insured under a condition of average
4. €6,450,000, being the EU aggregate minimum applied to property damage

The statutory floor for third-party property damage is €1,300,000 per accident, so only that amount is guaranteed under the compulsory minimum; average is a property-policy underinsurance condition, not a motor property-damage limit, and €6,450,000 is the personal injury aggregate, not the property figure. (Road Traffic Act 1961 (as amended); EU (Motor Insurance) Regulations)

31. Which body is responsible for compensating victims of road traffic accidents in Ireland caused by uninsured or untraced drivers?

1. The Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (FSPO)
2. The Motor Insurers' Bureau of Ireland (MIBI)
3. The Injuries Resolution Board
4. The Central Bank of Ireland

MIBI compensates victims of uninsured and untraced drivers under its Agreement with the Minister for Transport; the FSPO, Injuries Resolution Board and Central Bank perform different functions. (MIBI Agreement (Motor Insurers' Bureau of Ireland))

32. The Motor Insurers' Bureau of Ireland provides compensation to victims of uninsured and untraced drivers under an Agreement with which party?

1. The Central Bank of Ireland
2. The Minister for Justice
3. The Minister for Transport
4. Insurance Ireland, the industry representative body

MIBI operates under its Agreement with the Minister for Transport, not with the Central Bank, the Minister for Justice, or Insurance Ireland, which is a trade body rather than the contracting party. (MIBI Agreement with the Minister for Transport)

33. A haulage company operates 40 goods vehicles and wants to insure them all under a single commercial motor arrangement rather than 40 separate individually rated policies. Which feature is most characteristic of the fleet policy it is likely to be offered?

1. All vehicles are listed on one schedule under a single policy, with one renewal date and fleet-wide claims experience used for rating
2. Each vehicle retains its own separate renewal date and no-claims discount, unaffected by the claims record of the others
3. The insurer issues one combined certificate of insurance for the fleet as a whole, rather than one per vehicle
4. The compulsory third-party minimum limits no longer apply, as fleet policies are rated on a bespoke basis

A defining feature of fleet rating is a single schedule and renewal date with premium based on overall fleet claims experience; certificates of insurance are still required per vehicle and statutory minima always apply regardless of the rating basis. (Insurance Institute of Ireland, Commercial General Insurance (CIP-04) textbook — fleet motor insurance)

34. A company's goods vehicle is insured for carriage of its own goods only. The driver uses the vehicle to carry goods for a third party in return for payment, and the vehicle is damaged in an accident during that job. What is the likely outcome for the own-damage claim under the motor policy?

1. The insurer must pay the claim in full, as class-of-use restrictions cannot be enforced against a limited company
2. The insurer may decline the own-damage claim, as the vehicle was being used outside the insured class of use
3. The insurer must pay the claim in full, as compulsory cover automatically extends to any use of the vehicle
4. The claim is automatically referred to the Motor Insurers' Bureau of Ireland, as no policy is in force for that use

Own-damage cover typically only responds within the insured class of use, and carrying goods for hire or reward outside that class is a recognised ground for declining an own-damage claim; a policy remains in force, so referral to MIBI does not arise. (Insurance Institute of Ireland, Commercial General Insurance (CIP-04) textbook — commercial motor classes of use)

35. What is the purpose of the International Motor Insurance Card (Green Card) commonly issued to Irish commercial motor policyholders?

1. To replace the domestic certificate of insurance required under the Road Traffic Act 1961
2. To confirm that the vehicle is insured on a comprehensive rather than third-party basis
3. To provide evidence that the vehicle carries at least the compulsory minimum cover when driven abroad
4. To register the vehicle's fleet number with the Motor Insurers' Bureau of Ireland

The Green Card evidences that compulsory minimum cover extends to use of the vehicle abroad; it does not replace the domestic certificate, indicate the class of cover, or register anything with MIBI. (Insurance Institute of Ireland, Commercial General Insurance (CIP-04) textbook — International Motor Insurance Card)