Couple brings High Court action over allegedly defective works on south Dublin home

A couple has claimed before the High Court that they are unable to obtain details about the professional insurance policy held by an architect they want to sue over building works on their south Dublin home.

Michelle Hoctor and Simon More have sued architect Denis Gilbert, trading as Gilbert Architects and Creedon Construction Limited, trading as Creedon Construction, for damages for alleged negligence, misrepresentation and breach of duty.

Their claim centres around construction works and renovations carried out on their home at Pembrook Cottages, Booterstown.

It is claimed the works were carried out by Creedon Construction for €170,000 and were allegedly overseen and designed by Mr Gilbert, who was allegedly paid €9,600 for his services. They claim that since the works were done, and a certificate of completion provided, their property has been damaged by water ingress and moisture.

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It is claimed that an inspection of the property’s roof found that it was not performing as it should, and the completed roof works were not constructed in compliance with building regulations.

Significant degradation of the roof had occurred and replacement works were required, the report also stated.

The couple claim they were quoted figures of between €48,000 and €63,000 by the builder for the replacement works. They have hired another party to do the repairs and have also decided to sue the builder and the architect.

In addition, they have also sued the regulatory body for architects the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI).

They claim the RIAI is refusing to grant them details of Mr Gilbert’s insurance policy, on the grounds including it cannot do so without his consent and for procedural grounds. They claim they will not be able to get the information they require without an order from the court against both the RIAI and Mr Gilbert.

At the High Court on Thursday, the plaintiffs, represented by Robert Beatty SC, said that as part of their claim the couple seeks orders requiring Mr Gilbert and the RIAI to provide them with details of the architect’s professional indemnity insurance.

The details include the name of the insurer, the terms of the policy and whether the insurer has informed the defendants that it intends to refuse liability under the contract in respect of Mr Gilbert’s alleged liability.

They claim they are entitled to orders that they are provided with those details under the 2019 Consumer Insurance Contracts Act.

The plaintiffs claim that late last year, and earlier this year, they contacted Mr Gilbert asking him to notify his professional indemnifier that a legal claim against him may arise in respect of works carried out on their home, and for details about his policy.

They allege that Mr Gilbert has failed to respond positively to them. They then made a complaint to the RIAI about Mr Gilbert.

Throughout that process, they were informed that the architect has retired, moved overseas (but has not disclosed where), disposed of his project files and has sold his Dublin office, they allege.

They were also allegedly informed that Mr Gilbert has informed his insurer of a possible claim late last year, has a policy in place until this August, and has decided not to invoke his professional indemnity insurance policy.

The couple believe the refusal by the architect to provide them with the insurance details is an attempt to try to ensure that the entire liability of their claim is borne by Creedon Construction’s insurers.

The matter came before Mr Justice Brian O’Moore on Thursday, who on an ex parte basis (only the plaintiffs were represented), granted the plaintiffs permission to serve short notice of the injunction proceedings on the RIAI and Mr Gilbert. The judge adjourned the injunction application to a date next month.