Company connected to major boom-time developer ordered to pay damages to tenants

Two tenants renting an apartment in Orchard Lodge on Watery Lane, Clondalkin, took a case against their landlord, Kelland Group Limited.

The Orchard Lodge apartment complex was developed by Kelland Homes, one of Dublin’s largest house-builders in recent decades.

The company has constructed thousands of properties in Clondalkin, Tallaght and Rathfarnham.

It was founded by the late Paddy Kelly, a multi-millionaire who was previously named on the UK’s property rich list in 2010. He was estimated to be worth £90m at the time.

Mr Kelly died in 2011 at the age of 68 following a 10-year battle with leukaemia.

His son, Patrick Kelly Jr, is now managing director of Kelland Homes and is also listed as a director of Kelland Group.

The Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) this month ordered Kelland Group to pay damages of €500 to two tenants living in an apartment in the Orchard Lodge complex.

It found that a notice of termination served on the tenants last July 17 was invalid due to a defect contained in the notice.

The RTB said the company also breached its landlord obligations by failing to allow the tenants to enjoy peaceful and exclusive occupation of the apartment.

Kelland Group was ordered to pay €100 to tenant Miroslaw Fudali and €400 to Malgorzata Domagala.

It is the third time a successful RTB case has been taken against the company.

Mr Fudali was involved in another dispute with Kelland Group in 2022. On that occasion, the RTB found an eviction notice served on him on May 5, 2022, was also invalid.

In 2019, a tenant renting a basement apartment on Lower Baggot Street, ­Dublin, had his case upheld after claiming the eviction notice served on him was not valid.

In a statement, Kelland Group said: “Kelland Group has paid damages of €500 to the tenants.”

Other tenants also took successful cases against their landlords over invalid eviction notices this month.

In Co Wexford, two landlords were ordered to pay a tenant €1,175 in damages as a result of issuing her with two notices of termination, an invalid rent increase and failing to maintain the property.

The tenant lives in a house in Ard Álainn, New Ross. Landlords Richard and Annette O’Neill claimed the tenant had been engaging in anti-social behaviour. This was not upheld by the RTB.

They were ordered to pay €400 for the invalid eviction notices, €75 damages for the rent increase and €700 for breaching their landlord obligations in respect of the standard and maintenance of the property.

A company called Vicar Street Properties was also found to have served an invalid eviction notice and rent increase on two tenants renting a property on Vicar Street in Tuam, Co Galway. Landlords were also ordered to return deposits to tenants.​