An estimated cohort approaching 100,000 apartments and duplexes built between 1991 and 2013 carry fire safety, structural or water-ingress defects — a €2.5 billion problem the State has committed to remediating. The commitment is real; the machinery is arriving in stages; and for owners and their management companies, the difference between drift and readiness is decided now, before the main Act passes.
Mary Molloy Solicitors are solicitors, not engineers, architects or building surveyors. Nothing on this page is a technical assessment of any property or works. Defects claims stand or fall on independent expert evidence — a chartered engineer’s or building surveyor’s report — obtained early. Scheme rules, grant rates and legislation in this area change frequently; confirm the current position before making any decision.
The Landscape in Three Layers
- Open now: the Interim Remediation Scheme (December 2023) — emergency fire-safety works, OMC applies to the Housing Agency, progress slower than hoped with procurement delays acknowledged in early 2025;
- In progress: the statutory scheme — pre-legislative scrutiny completed January 2026, opening targeted for 2026, covering fire safety, structural and water-ingress defects at building level, with parameters (caps above all) still to be settled by the final Act;
- Already earned: retrospection — qualifying works since 17 January 2023 intended to be fundable, subject to conditions including fire-services engagement.
Why the OMC Is Everything
Both schemes run at building level: the owners’ management company applies, procures, contracts and accounts. An organised OMC — functioning board, defects professionally assessed, records in order — will move through the machinery; a dormant one becomes the bottleneck its members pay for. Individual owners hold real levers under the MUD Act framework (meetings requisitioned, agendas forced, boards joined), and deploying them is frequently the first legal work these buildings need. The wider picture: apartment & duplex defects.
The Readiness Playbook
Assess: the building’s defects professionally documented — the file every application stands on. Apply: interim-scheme eligibility for fire-safety works checked now. Document: every levy, invoice, minute and fire-officer letter filed — retrospection and future funding run on this. Preserve: the limitation analysis on any surviving developer or professional claims done today, because those clocks ignore legislative timetables. And where scheme decisions go wrong once the machinery is running, public-law remedies exist — our judicial review practice sits alongside this one for exactly that.
Owner or OMC Director in a 1991-2013 Block?
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About the Author
Richard O’Shea, Solicitor practises with Mary Molloy Solicitors (established 1981), advising homeowners, self-builders, subcontractors and SME contractors across Ireland on building disputes, defects claims and payment recovery. Richard holds a Diploma in Mediation from the Law Society of Ireland — central to construction work, where conciliation and mediation resolve many disputes without a courtroom. Contact Richard on 01 5827148 or richardoshea@marymolloysolicitors.com.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Every farm and family situation is different, and you should obtain advice on your own circumstances before acting. In contentious business, a solicitor may not calculate fees or other charges as a percentage or proportion of any award or settlement.