Robert Dowds (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

881. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the action the Private Residential Tenancies Board can take to recover money owed by tenants to landlords after the tenants have vacated the accommodation they were renting; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11448/15]

Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Residential Tenancies Act 2004 regulates the tenant-landlord relationship in the private rented residential sector. The Private Residential Tenancies Board (PRTB) was established under the Act to operate a national tenancy registration system and to facilitate the resolution of disputes between landlords and tenants in this sector.

Receipt of a determination order is the official notification to parties of the final outcome of a dispute resolution case. A determination order sets out the terms to be complied with, including any payments owing and the length of time given to comply. In making determination orders, the PRTB-appointed adjudicators, mediators or Tribunal members as the case may be, can make provision to allow for payment of awards in instalments to facilitate recovery of the award, based on the circumstances of the case.

A party who fails to comply with one or more terms of a determination order is open to having legal proceedings taken against him or her in the Courts. Under the Act, enforcement of PRTB orders is a discretionary power and the Board exercises this power taking account of the circumstances pertaining to each case. However, while there is no legal obligation on the PRTB to enforce, the Board takes the issue of non-compliance with determination orders very seriously. During 2013, it referred 394 cases to its legal advisors for enforcement proceedings. It is also open to parties to pursue enforcement independently through the Courts, including the seeking of a garnishee order.

It should be noted that going to Court does not of itself ensure successful enforcement and more particularly, recoupment of an award. In many cases the best option, and one which the PRTB facilitates, is for the parties to agree a schedule of payments.