Judge rejects council offer to children over damp living conditions

A judge has rejected settlement offers of €2,500 each to two children said to have suffered infections over nine years in an allegedly cold and damp local authority house said to be unfit for human habitation.
Judge Fiona O’Sullivan said she refused to accept the offers, made by Fingal County Council, as adequate to meet the claims of the children who sued the local authority through their father Femi Atoyebi.
Barrister Eileen McAuley had told the Circuit Civil Court she could not in all conscience recommend the court’s acceptance of the settlement figures in cases where she estimated damages should be in the region of €15,000 or more.
She said the children aged 13 and 15 had suffered ill health since moving with their parents into their three-bedroom rented home at Parslickstown Green, Mulhuddart, Dublin.
Ms McAuley told Judge O’Sullivan the family had moved into the house in August 2013 when the children were aged two and four.
“From the beginning there was excessive moisture and humidity in the house which, according to the father of the children, had inadequate ventilation and insulation,” Ms McAuley said in a legal opinion. “There was a chilly atmosphere in their home added to by draughts.”
Counsel said there had been a significant amount of mould growth and dampness in every room of the house which had contributed to the ill health of the children.
Ms McAuley said Fingal County Council had entered a full defence to the claims and, while offering €2,500 and District Court costs to both children, had stated that if the cases went ahead, liability would be fully contested.
She said forensic engineer Lloyd Semple had found extensive mould on walls in most rooms and excessive mould on curtains and the family’s clothes. In a report he had stated that in his opinion the condition of the house breached statutory housing regulations for rented houses.
Judge O’Sullivan said that even taking the liability issue into account, the settlement offers were not enough.
The claims of the two children will now go to a contested hearing before another judge.
Judge O’Sullivan allowed a third member of the family who is now aged 20 to proceed with her claim in her own name.