Complaint against Pat Kenny upheld

RTÉ BROADCASTER Pat Kenny was yesterday found to have been unfair in his on-air treatment of the company which insured solicitor Michael Lynn.

During a discussion about the rogue solicitor with a legal journalist on RTÉ Radio 1, Mr Kenny asked what was the legal basis for AIG Europe (Ireland) Ltd withdrawing Lynn’s insurance since he had not been charged with a criminal offence.

Comments by Mr Kenny included referring to the insurer as a “so-called reputable insurance company”. He also said “anyone out there that’s got an insurance policy with AIG will be wondering where they stand at the moment”.

In its complaint to the Broadcasting Complaints Commission (BCC), AIG Europe (Ireland) Ltd said it was “seriously concerned with the damage that this programme has caused to its professional reputation”.

AIG claimed that Mr Kenny’s statements were “defamatory” and “caused them significant distress and embarrassment”.

RTÉ responded that “what was broadcast was simply an appropriate question given the uncertainty of the legal basis for the withdrawal of insurance cover” and that Mr Kenny was not asserting that AIG was not reputable. The broadcaster also said that a statement from the insurer on the matter was read out before the end of the programme and that AIG had declined its offer of an interview. After he read out the company’s statement, Mr Kenny said: “which tells me nothing really, but anyway that’s their response”.

The BCC upheld the complaint against the broadcaster of unfairness, but rejected the complaint over inaccurate facts. It said Mr Kenny’s line of questioning and his comment on the response from AIG Europe (Ireland) Ltd “constituted unfairness”.

The BCC asserted that Mr Kenny’s dismissive reaction to the insurer’s statement “resulted in AIG Europe (Ireland) Ltd not being given fair right of reply”.

However, the commission concluded that there was “no evidence of inaccurate facts or information which could constitute an attack on the company’s honour or reputation”.