The High Court has granted Bank of Ireland Mortgage Bank Unlimited Company an order for possession of a home in Kilmeaden, Co Waterford, after allowing the bank’s appeal from a Circuit Court decision that had refused possession. The order is stayed for six months to give Patricia Mooney time to seek alternative accommodation and allow the parties an opportunity to reach an agreement.
Mr Justice Heslin delivered the judgment on 1 July 2022 after a full-day hearing on 27 May. The appeal was heard de novo, meaning the High Court considered the case afresh. The bank sought possession so it could sell the mortgaged property and recover the secured debt. The proceedings were not an application for a money judgment.
The loan was €140,000, advanced in 2006 for a ten-year term. The bank’s evidence was that the balance stood at €100,048.43 in July 2015, including €56,597.23 in arrears. By July 2021, the balance had risen to €109,556.50. The defendant did not dispute the default, the arrears or the amounts claimed. The court also found that the loan term had expired, no payments had been made since March 2017, and the bank owned the registered mortgage charge.
Ms Mooney argued that the bank had failed to comply with the Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears (CCMA) by refusing an alternative repayment arrangement in 2014 without adequate reasons. She also relied on her health difficulties, her role as sole guardian to her granddaughter, and settlement proposals that the bank did not accept. The judge found that the bank’s 2014 letter and accompanying information provided prima facie evidence of compliance with the relevant CCMA provision. He held there was no breach of the code’s moratorium on possession proceedings: the case began more than sixteen months after that letter.
The judgment said the court could not assess whether either side’s settlement offers were reasonable or require a party to accept them. It also concluded that the evidence did not establish a defence to the possession claim. While acknowledging the defendant’s circumstances, the judge said they did not provide a legal basis to refuse the relief where the bank’s proofs were in order.
The court therefore allowed the appeal and granted possession, with a six-month stay. The stay, the judge said, would give Ms Mooney time to seek alternative accommodation. The bank had indicated it was willing to engage during that period.