Tipperary council tenants 'upset' over housing inspector's 'catch people out' approach

Housing maintenance inspections upset council tenants in an estate in Carrick-on-Suir Municipal District who felt the local authority's approach was to “try to catch people out”, the monthly meeting of the District's councillors was told.

Carrick-on-Suir MD Cathaoirleach Cllr David Dunne told council management he was contacted by a number of constituents who were “very upset” with the way maintenance inspections of their council homes were handled.

He said an engineer visited their homes and pointed out things they had changed but hadn't informed the council about. “I didn't think that was the purpose of this; that we are going out trying to catch people out”.

Only three to four houses were inspected but “word went around like wildfire” in the estate and people were ringing him asking why the Council was inspecting the houses after 25 years.

The Sinn Féin councillor acknowledged some of the changes to homes were not “strictly within the rules” but he didn't like to see tenants being “dragged over the coals” and having to take out a stove they installed.

The Sinn Féin councillor said the maintenance inspections were a “great idea” as they enable the Council to “get ahead of the curve” in relation to the condition of council homes rather than waiting for them to be vacated when a tenant dies.

But he cautioned the Council has to be “very, very careful” in how it approached them and needs to conduct them in the right way as people living in council homes have great pride.

Cllr Dunne warned the Council could have a situation developing where tenants refused to let council engineers into houses to inspect them.

Gillian Barry of Tipperary County Council's Housing Section asked Cllr Dunne to give her the name of the estate and promised to look into the matter and speak to the engineering staff.

“We want these surveys to be a success. The inspections are purely for (housing) stock condition and planning for the future,” she stressed.

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