Complainant

Respondent

Parties

Jozef Gasior

Canal Road Management Co. Ltd.

Representatives

Siobhan Mc Loone Letterkenny Citizens Information

Conor McMenamin/ Martin Mcgee

Act

Complaint/Dispute Reference No.

Date of Receipt

Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under Section 21 Equal Status Act, 2000

CA-00019650-001

08/06/2018

It was submitted that the claimant was a tenant of Apt.8 Grand Central Appartments   from the 4th.Dec. 2017 and had signed a tenancy agreement for 12 months .The accommodation comprised 2 bedrooms and the claimant shared the apartment with another tenant who was unconnected to him.The claimant approached the respondent in Jan 2018 to discuss the HAP Scheme.The respondent indicated that if the claimant was willing to rent a 2 bedroom apartment as a sole occupant , he would consider his request regarding HAP.The claimant did not require a 2 bedroom   apartment and was aware that any HAP support would be disallowed as he would be considered over accommodated.The claimant’s application to the Local Authority for HAP was approved on the 21st.March 2018.When the claimant approached the property manager for the respondent to sign the HAP form , Mr.McG refused to accept or sign it – asserting that the respondent did not take part in HAP where a tenant is sharing accommodation and arguing that there was too much paperwork involved in the process.The claimant was approached by Mr.McG in early April 2018 , offering to allow him to terminate his 12 month lease early with full return of his deposit to enable him to seek alternative accommodation which might accept HAP.At the end of May 2018 , the claimant was relocated to Apt.37 to share accommodation with another tenant as the tenant the claimant had been sharing with had vacated Apt. 8 .On the 27th.June , the claimant received a termination notice signed by Mr.C.McM advising him that he was required to vacate Appt. 37 on 1st.August 2018 as the apartment was to be sold within 3 months of the termination notice.The claimant was unable to secure   alternative accommodation , and was rendered homeless. On a temporary basis he moved in with his sister , her husband and their 4 children.

The claimant obtained alternative accommodation on the 10th.Aug and received support through HAP from the 10th.Nov. 2018.

It was submitted that the respondent refused to complete the HAP form despite a number of requests , resulting in him being unable to get housing assistance from the local authority for a prolonged period.It was submitted that when the claimant brought the HAP paperwork to the office the respondent stated that there was too much paperwork involved in the HAP scheme.This placed the claimant in a very difficult financial situation.”When compared with a tenant not requiring HAP , this amounts to less favourable treatment “ and it was submitted that on this basis the claimant had established a prima facie case of discriminatory treatment on housing assistance grounds. It was further submitted that on becoming aware of the claimant’s intentions to make an Equal Status complaint , the respondent relocated the claimant to an alternative property which they stated they intended to sell and terminated the tenancy.It was submitted that the claimant suffered an actual financial loss of €535.50 from 22nd.March 2018 to 18th.November 2018 as a direct result of the respondent company ignoring his requests to engage in the HAP process .It was also contended that the claimant suffered significant inconvenience and emotional distress through being made temporarily homeless due to the termination of his tenancy.

The claimant’s representative submitted into evidence the Rental Lease Agreement between the claimant   and Canal Road Management Company Ltd. – signed by Mr.McG),confirmation of qualifying for HAP from Donegal County Council dated 21.03.18.

The following documents in the name of Canal Road Management Co. Ltd. were also submitted :

Lease Agreement signed by Mr.McG

Spreadsheets re: rent due / received

Apartment Inventory

Statement confirming cliamant’s tenancy at Appartment 8 (signed by Mr.McG)

Mr.McG’s signature appears on rent receipts issued to the claimant.

The following documents were submitted into evidence in the name of Canal Road Rental Co. Ltd.

Utility Bill

Information sheet re: rental rates

Bank details for payment of rent

The following document were submitted in the name ofMr. McM and it was submitted that Mr.McM also signed for receipt of ESI Form

Termination Notice with Statutory Declaration

In response to the post hearing submission from Mr.McG, the claimant’s representative submitted that the claimant received confirmation of tenancy registration from the RTB dated 11th.July 18 – casting doubt on the respondent’s assertions that it can take years to receive registration from the RTB.She advised that no evidence of registration of the claimant’s tenancy at No.8 had been furnished by the respondent.It was submitted that the tenancy registration application form was submitted for registration on the same date that the claimant received the termination notice – 27th.June 2018.She questioned why the respondent felt it necessary to register the claimant’s tenancy at Apt 37 on the date he was provided with a termination notice.It was submitted that Mr.McMenamiin wrote to the WRC on headed paper bearing the company name – Canal Road Rental Company Ltd while signing the correspondence as Director Canal Road Management Company Ltd. It was submitted that the respondent was being deliberately evasive and misleading in relation to which company is the liable company for the purposes of the Equal Status complaint. It was submitted that no clarity on the matter of the identity of the respondent had been forthcoming.

The respondent submitted that Canal Road Management Company has nothing to do with rent ; that the lease agreement was in error and that rents go to Canal Road Rental Company while the leasing is with Canal Road Management Company Ltd.It was accepted that Canal Road Rental Company Ltd. was the lease holder and received the rent.The respondent undertook to submit clarifying documentation regarding the identity of the respondent within 2 weeks of the date of the hearing including registration documents from the Tenancy Board.It was submitted that Mr.McG was employed by Canal Road Management Company Ltd. and that he carried out the day to day running of the properties dealing with VAT returns , Fire Safety , cleaning and bills and that he was on site.

It was submitted that Apt 37 was sold in the last 8 weeks and that evidence of same would be submitted to the WRC.The respondent initially indicated that HAP invariably presented problems but contended that they had HAP tenants in a number of their properties.Mr.McG said the paperwork would be passed onto Mr.McM’s desk.The respondent could not recall receiving the claimant’s HAP paperwork and stated that lots of stuff landed on his desk.

The respondent was unable to recall when the decision was taken to sell the apartment.

In a post hearing submission , Mr.C.McM as “Director Canal Road Management Company Ltd” advised – on paper headed Canal Road Rental Company Ltd.”- that registration documents had not been received from the RTB and that the process can take a few years.He also furnished a document from his auctioneer stating that marketing of the apartment commenced on the 5th.Nov. 2019 – presumably this is a typing error – that the sale was agreed on 8.11.2019 and closed on the 7th.June 2019.

The tenancy registration application form dated 27.06.18 sets out the landlord details as” Canal Road Rental”.

On the basis of the evidence presented at the hearing , the written submissions of the respondent’s representatives , the documentation presented from the RTB as well as the information gleaned from the Companies Registration Office , I find the claimant has named the incorrect respondent for the purposes of these proceedings and accordingly I find the complaint is not well founded.