Irish construction companies were prominent among customers of Independent Insurance, the British firm that went under after a series of re-insurance deals came to light. The company started trading in Ireland under an EU directive liberalising cross-Border financial services.

But, because the employer's liability insurance they bought is not compulsory in Ireland, the clients are not covered by the insurance protection scheme that protects Independent's British customers. Apart from the race to find alternative cover - often at inflated prices - it means many are facing legal actions without the benefit of insurance cover.

It could be read as an illustration of EU half measures making things worse than they originally were, or alternatively, as an argument for the sort of harmonisation across the Union which the Commission seems to favour. Whichever, it is certainly an illustration of the truism that if a deal looks too good to be true, it generally is. Independent offered rates far below their competitors for covering risks at the higher end of the business. It seems many signed up without checking the small print.