HUNDREDS OF RESIDENTS of a Cork City suburb have taken a case against a landlord seeking compensation over claims that he did not address alleged “criminal activity” and antisocial behaviour of his tenants over a period of years.
The Eagle Valley Residents’ Association have taken a case on behalf of 188 households in the Wilton estate over a raft of complaints against a landlord for not terminating the tenancy of the family.
Kevin O’Donovan, the landlord for the now-vacated property, told the Tenancies Tribunal that he faces being “personally exposed for several hundred thousands” of euros in compensation following a decision by the Residential Tenancies Board, that he failed to ensure his tenants would not engage in antisocial behaviour.
He has appealed sections of the RTB finding, claiming he acted quickly to address residents’ concerns.
The hearing, which sat virtually today for preliminary evidence, heard that there were “years’” of alleged incidents in the estate, and that the landlord does not contest that there was antisocial behavior by the tenants.
Compensation awards at the RTB are capped at €20,000 and, if the Association is successful in its legal action, it could secure a maximum seven-figure settlement, although some compensation awards may be significantly lower than the capped figure approved.
It has been adjourned until the tribunal can decide whether it has jurisdiction and can allow each household to be compensated.
Barry Sheehan, solicitor for Eagle Valley Residents’ Association, said it would hear evidence from households “directly affected” by the alleged activity and those “not as directly affected”, with some residents having allegedly experienced “very significant issues for a number of years” with the former tenants.
Sheehan added that while some residents were “not directly affected” by the alleged “criminality”, it had the potential to diminish the value of their property.
He further said residents contest the landlord’s stance that he “took all reasonable steps in seeking to enforce his tenants’ statutory duty”.
An adjudicator for the RTB found in favour of the Residents’ Association following a hearing in March, where allegations were made that the family renting the property was involved in serious incidents of criminal and antisocial behaviour.
In his appeal, O’Donovan told the tribunal today that he received “defective legal advice” when responding to residents’ complaints, but that he acted quickly in seeking to enforce his tenants’ legal duty under section 16(h) of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004, which states tenants are not to behave within the rental home, or in the vicinity of it, in a way that is anti-social.
The tribunal heard O’Donovan also secured an RTB order requiring the tenants to vacate at a hearing held in August.
Tribunal co-chair Roderick Maguire urged both sides to speak “off the record” and decide whether aspects of the case could be agreed, or if the matter can be “settled without prejudice” as, once the tribunal rules, the decision would “remain on the internet forever”.
Following a brief break to allow the consultation, Sheehan said the landlord was “accepting there was antisocial behaviour, so that aspect of the case no longer needs to be formally proven before you”, but that the compensation claim remained.
O’Donovan agreed, saying that he received “full, comprehensive evidence” of the alleged criminal activity in November 2021 and that his subsequent actions were “very much dependent on receiving that information”.
The tribunal said it would issue a decision in the coming weeks on jurisdiction and whether to grant a request from Sheehan for an in-person hearing.
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