The Motor Insurance Advisory Board is prepared to extend the time given to the Irish Insurance Federation (IIF) to hand over data on motor insurance policies.
Ms Dorothea Dowling, chairwoman of the board, said: "We're quite prepared to give them an extension but only if we get 100 per cent of the data, 100 per cent correct." She was unable to indicate how long the extension may be, pending further information from the federation.
The board's decision followed comments by IIF chief executive Mr Mike Kemp that it would not meet yesterday's deadline.
"We are going to need an extension but we're talking weeks rather than months," he said. Mr Kemp denied the IIF was seeking the extension because it had been uncooperative in the past.
The board has sought details of every policy sold between 1993 and 1999, including the premium paid and the claims - if any - against the policy.
Should the IIF fail to provide the information in the time granted, it would be left to the Minister of State for Science, Technology and Commerce, Mr Noel Treacy, to decide the course of action to be taken, Ms Dowling said.
The IIF yesterday rejected allegations that motor insurers made large profits from the young driver market.
Pending the outcome of its investigations, the board has urged consumers to shop around, to seek the advice of reputable, independent insurance brokers and to examine the possibility of setting up group schemes.
