Alex Easton MLA has been left shocked after NI Assembly question answers showed that there have been 3405 reports of dampness and condensation relating to 1686 properties recorded over the last five years in Housing Executive homes in North Down.

Speaking today Alex Easton MLA:

“I am deeply concerned and frustrated that in Housing Executive properties across North Down that there are so many cases of damp being reported and continue to be reported and despite highlighting this time and time again at the NI Assembly that nothing appears to change or that there is even an attempt to hold the Housing Executive to account for the state of their property’s. I believe that it is the Housing Executives responsibility to tenants to ensure that they maintain and give best value for money to their tenants and that means the Housing Executive resolve all damp issues, and that they provide proper cavity wall insulation and loft insulation were necessary to address this.”

“We even see that tenants have become so desperate to have there property’s damp issues resolved, that they have even in some cases had to register claims for compensation for destroyed and damaged property’s, with 869 claims relating to damp in tenants’ properties since 2010.And in a further NI Assembly question answered, it is also clear that from the Housing Executive’s own data it is estimates that 63% of all Housing Executive properties have some sort of damp which is around 44,600 homes across Northern Ireland affected in some way.”

“It is totally unacceptable for people to have to pay over the odds to heat their homes because of poor insulation. At a time when the financial burden is high there are huge savings to be made for tenants if only the Housing Executive were to spend money to insulate home properly it would also deal properly with the damp and mould that occurs in some Housing Executive property’s. Fuel poverty is a serious issue and I will be contacting the Community’s Minister to see if she will take this mater seriously, and see what can be done to ensure that the Housing Executive take action to address Insulation in residents homes.”

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