The public is lodging fewer cases year on year to the small claims court, according to data released to The Irish Times.
In all, 2,081 such cases were lodged last year – a 55 per cent decrease from 2019 when 4,627 cases were brought.
Courts Service spokesperson Gerry Curran said the reasons behind the decline were “varied” and there might be “a greater awareness among goods and service providers of the process and a willingness to settle complaints more quickly”.
He also said “the pandemic caused a downturn in the levels of business across various civil areas of the courts, as some commercial and consumer activity waned during much of this period”.
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Small claims cases are a procedure for consumers and businesses based the State to resolve disputes up to €2,000 without need of a solicitor. These make up about 3 per cent of all District Court cases.
For a fee of €25 people can bring claims concerning goods, services, damage to property or non-return of key money – which is a rent deposit for a room in a house where a landlord lives or for a holiday home.
Electrical goods, furniture and fittings and holidays are the most common types of claims for goods and services.
Overall, 65 per cent of cases are settled without going to court. This usually happens when the court registrar contacts both sides in the dispute after a small claim is lodged.
Just under a quarter of cases lodged are heard by a judge. The likelihood of a claim succeeding once it makes it to court is quite high. Last year 70 per cent of the 478 cases which went ahead with a hearing were successful.
The Courts Service said it had upgraded its website to explain the small claims process more clearly, with a guide to the procedure and notes on how to make a claim.
“We don’t want one of the reasons people do not proceed with a small claim to be that they do not understand the process or it is too complex to proceed with,” Mr Curran said.
“An increased awareness of the small claims procedure and the simplification of the online process should see an increase in activity.”
The Courts Service said claimants could not request a remedy for time spent dealing with the issue, emotional distress or costs related to making the claim.
Debt cases, personal injury claims, disputes over hire purchase/leasing agreements, claims about residential rental deposits where the landlord does not live in the property, insurance matters and claims against government bodies are also excluded.
For parties based in another EU country, the European small claims procedure should be used.
