Defective Building Materials

I commenced the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Act 2022 (the Act) on the 22 of June 2023 which contains the enhanced grant scheme and adopted the related Regulations on the 29 of June 2023.

The detailed operation of the Scheme is a matter for the designated local authorities and the Housing Agency in the first instance. Their respective roles are set our clearly in the 2022 Act.

Local authorities have responsibility for the administration of the Enhanced Defective Concrete Blocks Grant scheme. This includes the initial validation of applications, notifying homeowners of the Housing Agency's determinations on damage threshold, the appropriate remediation option and grant amount, determination of the grant payable for alternative accommodation and storage costs and immediate repair works and the subsequent payment of grants to successful applicants.

The Housing Agency acts as agent on behalf of the local authorities under the Enhanced Grant Scheme. Applications received by a local authority are referred to the Housing Agency to review the 'Building Condition Assessment Report' and determine if the home has met the 'damage threshold' for entry to the scheme. Once a home has met the damage threshold for entry to the scheme, the Housing Agency engages its Framework Chartered Engineers to undertake the assessment, survey, sampling, testing and categorisation of the dwelling thereafter on a priority basis in accordance with the national standard I.S. 465:2018 and thereafter determine the appropriate remediation option and grant amount.

In undertaking this work of assessing dwellings, a practical approach is taken where the Housing Agency prioritises dwellings on relative severity and impact of damage and proximity of dwellings to other affected properties.