Ó An Roinn Tithíochta, Rialtais Áitúil agus Oidhreachta
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The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage Darragh O’Brien has today announced the opening of the Interim Remediation Scheme (Scheme) for the funding of emergency fire safety defect works in apartments and duplexes, constructed between 1991 and 2013.
The Scheme will be administered by the Housing Agency on a nationwide basis. The Scheme will be open to applications from Owners' Management Companies (OMCs) from 1pm today (11 December 2023). Applications can be made via the Housing Agency’s website.
The Scheme opening today will provide for the full funding of interim measures in order to provide an acceptable level of fire safety in buildings, pending completion of the full remedial works.
Full remedial works, which will include all necessary fire safety measures as well as those related to water ingress and structural damage, will be funded under a statutory scheme that will be legislated for next year. Work is already underway in the department on drafting this legislation.
The Minister commented:
“The Scheme I am launching today is an important next step in helping affected homeowners to help get their homes and lives back together. It will ensure that important measures can be put in place immediately to guarantee the long-term safety of the many thousands of apartment residents across Ireland.
“I am delighted that the Housing Agency have committed their knowledge and resources to helping to design and now operate this Scheme on a nationwide basis. Their experience and expertise gained over many years in, for example, the Pyrite Remediation Scheme and the Enhanced Defective Concrete Blocks Scheme will I am sure, prove to be invaluable in helping to ensure the successful implementation of this Scheme during 2024.”
The Minister noted that:
“This Interim Scheme is the result of a significant period of consultation with homeowners' representatives. I would like to pay tribute to their professionalism, diligence and patience through this process, I have engaged with them regularly on this issue throughout the last number of months. Their insights have been an essential element that has allowed my department, the Housing Agency and Local Authority Fire Services to put together this Scheme that will release funding for vital emergency measures in advance of the full statutory scheme being ready next year.”
In January 2023, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage Darragh O’Brien announced plans to draft legislation to support the remediation of apartments and duplexes with fire safety, structural safety and water ingress defects, constructed between 1991 and 2013. The proposed legislation will provide a statutory basis for the establishment of an Apartment and Duplex Defects Remediation scheme aimed at protecting the safety and welfare of those living in apartments or duplexes with such defects. The scope, eligibility criteria and conditions of the statutory scheme will ultimately depend on the legislation that is passed by the Houses of the Oireachtas and signed into law by the President.
Given the overall potential scale and estimated cost associated with rectifying these issues, it is likely that it will take many years to remediate all affected buildings. Resources and works, therefore, will need to be prioritised. Acknowledging this and considering that interim measures might be necessary in certain instances to ensure an acceptable standard of fire safety in buildings before the comprehensive completion of remedial works, the government is currently introducing an Interim Remediation Scheme on an administrative basis.
The scale of defects in apartments and duplexes is significant. The Working Group to Examine Defects in Housing that reported to Minister O’Brien in July 2022, estimated that between 50% and 80% of apartments and duplexes (or associated common areas) constructed between 1991 and 2013, may be affected by one or more fire safety, structural safety or water ingress defects. This equates to between 62,500 and 100,000 apartments/duplexes. The average cost of remediation is approximately €25,000 per unit, which means the full statutory scheme could have a potential cost to the Exchequer of between €1.5 billion and €2.5 billion.
Only defects that are attributable to defective design, defective or faulty workmanship, defective materials (or any combination of these) and were in contravention of the relevant Parts of the Building Regulations applicable at the time of construction will be eligible for inclusion in the statutory scheme. Any defects that originate from inadequate maintenance, poor management etc., will not be included within the scope of the scheme.
It is intended that a whole building approach will be taken to remediate relevant defects and to improve the safety of all occupants in the building. In light of their existing legal responsibilities and ownership of common areas, it is intended that Owners’ Management Companies will be funded to carry out the necessary remediation works, with specific limitations or exemptions on certain commercial owners.
A Code of Practice for the Remediation of Fire Safety Defects in the context of the Fire Services Acts, to provide guidance to relevant professionals, including guidance on interim safety measures was published in July 2023. The provisions of this Code of Practice will also ensure a consistent approach nationwide to remediation.
The scheme will provide for a form of certification, based on the Code of Practice, in relation to the works carried out to remediate defects in an apartment/duplex building. This is important for a range of stakeholders and processes, for example: insurance bodies, financial institutions, conveyancing.
Additional special resources have been allocated in the department and the Housing Agency to co-ordinate and oversee the administration of the Interim Scheme.