And the results of these invesitgations must be clearly set out for the public record.

The garda commissioner, Noel Conroy, has confirmed that a number of complaints have been received by him from the solicitors of accident victims. These allege that information on individuals held by the gardai was passed on to insurance companies . . . sometimes within a very short time of the accident happening . . . so that the claims could be settled quickly and often cheaply.

The passing on of personal information held on the garda computer records is specifically banned under data-protection legislation.

The data-protection commissioner Billy Hawkes has launched an investigation into claims made by the Sunday Tribune that garda data was made available to insurance companies in a number of cases.

New rules are also being drawn up within both the gardai and the insurance industry to ensure that all garda data is used only for the purpose it was originally collected.

It is, of course, vital that insurance companies keep their costs to a minimum and do not flinch from fighting fraudulent claims. That keeps premiums competitive and affordable.

But the move to keep costs down must not be at the expense of the right to privacy, nor can it compromise the independence of the gardai.

Both the data-protection commissioner and the garda commissioner are right to take a tough line on this issue.

A new code clearly spelling out what gardai can and can not divulge in terms of personal information will be introduced soon. So too will new guidelines for the insurance industry. Both are very welcome.