The Workplace Relations Commission found that landlord Mr Martin Phillips discriminated against tenant Ms Lica Pop by refusing to sign her Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) form and ordered him to pay €500 compensation. The decision was dated 18 December 2023.
Pop said she had asked Phillips to sign HAP forms repeatedly over several years. Phillips said he could not complete the form without a Tax Clearance Access Number, which he obtained on 10 December 2022. The adjudication officer found that Pop had established direct discrimination on the housing assistance ground and that Phillips had not rebutted it. A HAP form is used to apply for local authority help with rent.
The officer noted that the application was never processed and that Pop remained a tenant until moving out at the end of August 2023.