Two women have settled a High Court action in which they claimed they were unable to sell their four-year-old house because of allegedly serious structural defects.
Claire Moloney (38) and Patricia Feeley (37) had sued Erris Homes Ltd, Belmullet, Co Mayo, over alleged negligence and breach of contract in the construction of the house at Summerfield, Dublin Road, Castlebar, Co Mayo.
They also sued engineer James Maloney, Childers Heights, Ballina, Co Mayo, over allegedly negligently certifying the house as being built in accordance with good building practice when it allegedly was not. It was claimed the house was suffering from serious subsidence after cracks and dampness appeared in its walls.
The court heard the women bought the one-year-old house for €132,000 in 2002 with the intention of selling it three years later at a profit.
When they put it up for sale in 2005, they got two offers of €210,000 but the prospective purchasers pulled out when they saw the cracks in the walls, it was claimed. On the third day of the case yesterday, Ms Justice Mary Laffoy was told it had been settled and she struck out the proceedings.