Fire Brigade Charges

angelfire9

Just wondering if anyone here knows what the story is with being charged for the fire brigade attending a house fire?
Unfortunately my house went up in smoke on monday morning so obviously i had to call 999 for fire service, my household insurance policy does not include charges for fire brigade (go figure!) So I'm just wondering what it might set me back?
As an aside i always thought they only charged for hoax call outs?

And before anyone says it i know i should be grateful that my daughter & I got out ok (himself was at work) but the consolation is minimal when you see the damage the fire caused

Dr_MaSoN

angelfire9 wrote: »

Just wondering if anyone here knows what the story is with being charged for the fire brigade attending a house fire?
Unfortunately my house went up in smoke on monday morning so obviously i had to call 999 for fire service, my household insurance policy does not include charges for fire brigade (go figure!) So I'm just wondering what it might set me back?
As an aside i always thought they only charged for hoax call outs?

And before anyone says it i know i should be grateful that my daughter & I got out ok (himself was at work) but the consolation is minimal when you see the damage the fire caused

jesus angel, sorry to hear this.:(

Shield

Me too. I hope your insurance pays out quickly so you can get your life back on track. Do you mind if I ask what the cause of the fire was?

angelfire9

psni wrote: »

Me too. I hope your insurance pays out quickly so you can get your life back on track. Do you mind if I ask what the cause of the fire was?

Electrical fault!

timmywex

It depends on your area i suppose on charges and if they charge, different areas, different policies! Check your local councils website under the fire section perhaps and give the fire or enviroment section a ring and they should tell you!

I would imagine though, it would be a lot fairer to not charge you, in fairness, you did just lose your house!

Paulzx

As with everything else within the fire service in Ireland, charges are a mish mash of differences depending on whose personnel fiefdom within you happen to live. Different Councils make them up themselves and who is liable for charges.

I can only speak for what happens in Dublin. Up until about 5 years ago there was no charges whatsoever for calling out Dublin Fire Brigade. Dublin City Council decided ( against the wishes of DFB management ) to introduce charges but they were restricted to commercial users. There are still no charges to domestic houses irrestpective of the type of turnout.

As far as i'm aware there is a set initial charge of about 700 euro for a turnout to a commercial premises. For example, a fire alarm activation in an office block has a turnout of 2 motors, a TTl and a D.0. Fire alarm is investigated and found to be false they get a set bill. If there is a fire the bill can go up for additional appliances and the amount of time at scene. I have no idea if these bills are enforced or how they calculate them. I don't know what type of money is recovered each year.

Find out if they are penal on sending out bills for fire services in your area. If they are not, keep your head low and don't put your hand out to be slapped. You might get lucky!!

FGR

Many southern counties only charge for chimney fires in domestic cases however I don't know what the case is with Clare.

Give the county council a bell?

pjordan

The general charges (or costs - how much of this the local authority pass on to a consumer varies) for a standard fire incident is in the region of €500 per hour per appliance. Some Fire Authorities have a lesser charge of in the region of €200 for a Chimney Fire turnout and it would be argued by most Fire Authorities that these charges, if indeed they are passed on to the consumer, which is not always the case depending on your location, do not actually cover the real cost of turning out a crew of Fire fighters and a Fire tender. Hope this helps.

Paulzx

pjordan wrote: »

it would be argued by most Fire Authorities that these charges, if indeed they are passed on to the consumer, which is not always the case depending on your location, do not actually cover the real cost of turning out a crew of Fire fighters and a Fire tender. Hope this helps.

The function of a Fire Service is to provide an emergency service, not to justify its existance by covering its costs. Fire service charges are wrong and the fact that they vary depending on location is also wrong.

Can you imagine if the gardai were allowed levy charges for callouts? They are an emergency service just the same as the fire brigade yet there is no charge involved

Incidently, i wonder if the money collected from fire charges is ring fenced for use by the fire service itself. I doubt it, but maybe i'm wrong. Can anyone answer that for me?

timmywex

Cant answer you there paulzx, but sidetracking a bit, the ambulance service is like that in america a bit, charges etc, i hate the idea, i hope it never happens in ireland!

Eru

Paulzx wrote: »

The function of a Fire Service is to provide an emergency service, not to justify its existance by covering its costs. Fire service charges are wrong and the fact that they vary depending on location is also wrong.

Can you imagine if the gardai were allowed levy charges for callouts? They are an emergency service just the same as the fire brigade yet there is no charge involved

Incidently, i wonder if the money collected from fire charges is ring fenced for use by the fire service itself. I doubt it, but maybe i'm wrong. Can anyone answer that for me?

So if my housae burnt down I would also be charged to have it put out? Talk about kivking someone when they are down.
Its a joke that after paying tax your still expected to fork out when you actually use the service

However I am in favour of penalising people that make bogus, hoax calls or just plain and simple waste emergency services time.

Oh, dont know about the fire service but when Gardai are given a state funeral (ie killed in the line of duty) the widow or family is handed a bill afterwards. Now theres another disgrace!

civdef

Sample of what various policies are:

Charges for Fire Service

Fire Service Charges are an important element of the financing of the fire service. Donegal County Council charge €63.00 for a domestic call out. Commercial premises and road traffic collisions callouts are charged; the no. of hours brigade attended x no. of men. x rate per hour plus 30% for administration.

Fire Services Charges

Wicklow County Council has the following charges for calling out the Fire Service
Service Charges Chimney Fire €38.00
House Fire No Charge
Commercial Premises Actual cost in Wages plus 33%
Automatic Fire Alarms/
False Alarms Actual cost in Wages plus 33%
Road Traffic Accident Actual Cost in Wages plus 33%
(in the event of fatality, no charge is levied)
Cost divided between no. of cars involved

Usually Fire Brigade Charges are covered by an individuals House Insurance or Car Insurance.
For persons of limited means there is a waiver system for fire brigade call out charges.

Clare

Fire Brigade Attendance Fees – Types of Incident

Domestic Chimney Fires: €150.00

Other Domestic Incidents (Fires/Lockouts/Flooding/etc.): Actual Cost

Commercial/Agricultural Incidents (Fires/Lockouts/Flooding/etc.): Actual Cost

Road Traffic Incidents: Actual Cost

Automatic Fire Alarm Activations: Actual Cost

Malicious (Bogus) False Alarms (Charge to caller where caller is identified): Actual Cost

Forest/Gorse/Bog/etc Fire: Actual Cost

Burning of waste: Actual Cost

South Tipp

Fire Charges

* Chimney Fire: €100
* Other Fires/Incidents: €450 per hour/per station or actual cost of brigade whichever is lesser
* Max for House Fire €1700
* Commercial Fire - Full cost of the brigade plus 5%.

Where payment of these accounts would cause undue hardship a waiver scheme is in place.

The Fire Authority strongly advises that all property owners check that their insurance policy covers the cost of these charges.

Fyr.Fytr

Karlitosway1978 wrote: »

So if my housae burnt down I would also be charged to have it put out? Talk about kivking someone when they are down.
Its a joke that after paying tax your still expected to fork out when you actually use the service

However I am in favour of penalising people that make bogus, hoax calls or just plain and simple waste emergency services time.

Oh, dont know about the fire service but when Gardai are given a state funeral (ie killed in the line of duty) the widow or family is handed a bill afterwards. Now theres another disgrace!

Couldnt agree with you and paul more.

It may just cost lives, people afraid to call incase of a charge.

Might aswell make 999 a 1550 number while they're at it

IP "My house is on fire, 123 fake street my family are inside"
Control "Ok sir, €50 up front the rest payable within 7 days cash or cheque only please"

News reporter "The minister for the enviroment today launched the first fire appliance fitted with "chip and pin" to allow people to pay using credit or debit cards on the spot, the service is to be rolled out nationwide"

Will go back in time, like the original insurance fire companys, youll have to put a plate to mark your house as having insurance, no plate fire appliance keeps driving


Handed a bill for a state funeral thats shocking, the height of disrespect too, imaging someone devoting thier life to service or god forbit killed in the line of duty then the sheer cheek of it to have to pay to give the deceased an honourable send off.


From civdefs posts agree with chimneys, afa's etc being charged but definatley not domestic fires no way, unsure about rta's but suppose if its down to driver error or breaking road traffic act etc

The whole idea of charges for emergency services doesnt sit well with me, maybe for MFA's, AFA's still though

Paulzx

"Wicklow County Council has the following charges for calling out the Fire Service
Service Charges Chimney Fire €38.00
House Fire No Charge
Commercial Premises Actual cost in Wages plus 33%
Automatic Fire Alarms/
False Alarms Actual cost in Wages plus 33%
Road Traffic Accident Actual Cost in Wages plus 33%
(in the event of fatality, no charge is levied)
Cost divided between no. of cars involved

Usually Fire Brigade Charges are covered by an individuals House Insurance or Car Insurance.
For persons of limited means there is a waiver system for fire brigade call out charges. "



This rule with rta charges sums up the stupidity of the situation. If you have the good sense to die in an rta ( i'm not belittling road deaths ) the council won't send you a bill. Fair play!!!. However, if you end up being a paraplegic sure you'll be well able to pay the bill. The idea that sure the insurance company will pay the bill is irrelevant. It is still morally wrong to charge people for an emergency service

The concept that charges deter people from making unneccassry calls is hugely flawed. I would argue that it is in fact the case that sometimes people are scared of making a neccasery call because of the fear of financial penalty. This especially applies to elderly people who are the most vulnerable.

Paulzx

Fyr.Fytr wrote: »

The whole idea of charges for emergency services doesnt sit well with me, maybe for MFA's, AFA's still though

2 types generally of MFA's ( malicious false alarms aka bogies )

No. 1 - Young kid makes a call out of curiousty. Stupid and innocent enough to ring from the house phone. A quick call back to the house and the parents are told what has happened. You then here a crying kid in the background as Mammy slaps the arse of him. No more bogus calls. No charges required. Lesson learnt


No. 2 - Pond life scummer takes sim card from phone and dialls 999. 5 mins later 2 fire engines arrive outside elderly ladies house across the road for the fourth time that week. Send scummer a bill- don't think so. Even if you could track him do you think he's going to pay?

Moral of the story. The only people that are affected by fire charges are honest, decent memebers of society who can be compelled to pay and they are normally the people who ring with geniune cases



Billing for AFA's - automatic fire alarms, is the same. Law abiding companies recieve bills and have to pay for a service that their tax should cover

civdef

I seem to recall hearing someplace that the fire charges actually bring in very little money to the local authority, as a lot of them are waivered (or just ignored), and especially bearing in mind the costs of actually collecting the money.

In other countries, insurance companies have to contribute money annually to the fire services, on the principle that the fire service actions considerably reduce the losses accruing to the insurers. This would still get passed on to the consumer of course, but would probably be more equitable.

Fyr.Fytr

yes paul thats why i said maybe and the fact that it doesnt sit well with me.

Alot of firms have fire marshalls who investigate alarm then contact monitoring company to cancel the appliances and the d/o who are mobile, that makes sense as your mav quicker.

So it is an incentive for them to cancel you early and avoid the charges, granted it wont always work.

As for pond life, give them suspended sentences, from the highest tree of course.

Fyr.Fytr

Think its like the bin tags fiasco though, paying twice for one service. Wouldnt mind if it was going back in, but dfb still work off minimum staffing levels, fire cover is being reduced (granted swords went full time but malahide closed), equipment is dated (ttl in hq is from the 80's on a 00's body) it goes on and on

Our man in Havana

It would be like the Gardaí sending you a bill for catching the burglars that robbed your house. Simply unthinkable.

Laois CC sent a bill for €500 for a callout to a house fire. 1 unit 2 hours most of that was making sure the fire was out. They sent the bill to the lodger and not the owner of the house. Totally unjust.

Odysseus

Karlitosway1978 wrote: »

Oh, dont know about the fire service but when Gardai are given a state funeral (ie killed in the line of duty) the widow or family is handed a bill afterwards. Now theres another disgrace!

I'm not saying your incorrect, but I just find that so hard to believe. I never knew that, its appalling.

Eru

Odysseus wrote: »

I'm not saying your incorrect, but I just find that so hard to believe. I never knew that, its appalling.

Have heard it more than once. Not saying the family pays for them all such as Charlies, etc but yes Gardai's family's have been handed bills and I know Ms McCabe always said she regreted allowing a state funeral.

Thank about it, how were the families of the 2 firemen in Bray treated? Not very well by all accounts.

Was Bertie at their funeral? Nope but he sent an aide to a funeral for someone that self overdosed on illegal drugs!

angelfire9

timmywex wrote: »

It depends on your area i suppose on charges and if they charge, different areas, different policies! Check your local councils website under the fire section perhaps and give the fire or enviroment section a ring and they should tell you!

I would imagine though, it would be a lot fairer to not charge you, in fairness, you did just lose your house!

Well, the bill has arrived, 4 and a half months after the fire, having waited over 30 minutes for the fire service to attend my house fire, they sent me a bill for €1900!! Nice or what! :eek:

Our man in Havana

Send it to your insurance company. Don't worry about it.

angelfire9

Bond-007 wrote: »

Send it to your insurance company. Don't worry about it.

As previously stated my insurance cover does not include fire brigade charges but i'm not worrying about it haven't a notion of paying it, if i had recieved an efficent service i might consider it but waiting 30+ minutes for the fire brigade at 2.20am on a monday morning when i live 5 minutes from the fire station (even given that it is not a full time station i consider this an appalling response time) means i am not paying!

Our man in Havana

There is very little chance of the county council chasing you for it. €1900 is excessive to say the least. I think they know that most of these bills are paid by insurance companies.

I know a friend of mine told them the service was useless and they dropped the bill.

TheNog

angelfire9 wrote: »

Well, the bill has arrived, 4 and a half months after the fire, having waited over 30 minutes for the fire service to attend my house fire, they sent me a bill for €1900!! Nice or what! :eek:

Ouch. That is a bit steep especially coming up to Christmas.

As for the 30 minutes wait - maybe on another call-out? If there was no other call-out I suppose they can only be as quick as the slowest person to get to the station.

alentejo

While I agree that fire charges are a clumsy way to generate income, local authorities must cover some of the cost to run the fire service.

This is either going to be covered by increased taxation or some kind of fiscal charge.

rates! If domestic rates were re-introduced, there would be demonstrations of a much larger scale as witnessed during the over 70's medical card fiasco!

Keith186

Paulzx wrote: »

Law abiding companies recieve bills and have to pay for a service that their tax should cover

Companies only pay 12.5% tax which is very low so I don't see why companies should not have to pay for a service.

OP, €1,900 is taking the piss! You're right not to bother paying it.

Tip: Get FBC's added to your policy.

Our man in Havana

They are very unjust as many LAs don't charge at all.

angelfire9

TheNog wrote: »

Ouch. That is a bit steep especially coming up to Christmas.

As for the 30 minutes wait - maybe on another call-out? If there was no other call-out I suppose they can only be as quick as the slowest person to get to the station.

No other call out, a series of errors, almost a comedy of errors really caused the delay, radio not working in one engine, another engine failed to start i was just cursed on the night!

Eru

angelfire9 wrote: »

it haven't a notion of paying it, if i had recieved an efficent service i might consider it but waiting 30+ minutes for the fire brigade at 2.20am on a monday morning when i live 5 minutes from the fire station (even given that it is not a full time station i consider this an appalling response time) means i am not paying!

Then next time your house is burning down put it out yourself or call an alternative voluntary fire service who will drop everything including their family and rush to the scene in a more acceptable, customer service orientated time.

tallaght01

IN fairness, 30 mins when your gaff is burning down is unacceptable. There's no point in getting snotty abou that particular reality. Especially if you're expected to pay 2k for the service.

On a side note, me eyes nearly popped out of my head reading that cops who die in the line of duty can rest in peace knowing that their widow gets handed a bill for the send off!!!!!! Outrageous!!!!!!!

Our man in Havana

On a side note, me eyes nearly popped out of my head reading that cops who die in the line of duty can rest in peace knowing that their widow gets handed a bill for the send off!!!!!! Outrageous!!!!!!!

It sure is. What an insult to the years of service and the ultimate sacrifice they made.

wicklaman83

Karlitosway1978 wrote: »

Then next time your house is burning down put it out yourself or call an alternative voluntary fire service who will drop everything including their family and rush to the scene in a more acceptable, customer service orientated time.

are you saying that 30 mins is acceptable to wait for an emergency service.thats apart of their job to drop everything to get to the call in the quickest time possible.if you think it is acceptable it is no wonder you have a desk job in AGS

SerialComplaint

Many rural houses are more than 30 minutes away from the nearest fire station, before you even think of the amount of time it takes to page the retained fire officers, get them out of their beds, get dressed and get to the station.

angelfire9

SerialComplaint wrote: »

Many rural houses are more than 30 minutes away from the nearest fire station, before you even think of the amount of time it takes to page the retained fire officers, get them out of their beds, get dressed and get to the station.

This is true, but i do live 5 minutes from the fire station! Consider this though: i rang 999 at 2.23am, i rang my parents at 2.35am, i rang my sister at 2.40am and my mother rang my brother (to get clothes for me) at 2.45am and all of them were up dressed and at my house before the fire service! (all live about equi-distant to my house as the fire station) I had 3 garda cars in attendance before 2.30am the ambulance didn't arrive until after the fire service because the controller at the 999 call centre in limerick decided that because i had told her everyone was out of the house that we didn't require an ambulance! If the fire service had attended the fire promptly then thousands of euro worth of damage to my house could have been avoided that's why the charge of almost €2k for their "service" leaves a bad taste in my mouth and that's why i'm not paying it!
What's worse though, if i was unfortunate enough to be in the same situation again i'd think twice before i'd ring 999!

Eru

Yes but the Gardai are working fulltime anyway and did your parents have to stop off at the firestation, get geared up and arrive with fire fighting equipment? No and thats the difference.

civdef

In fairness, the time from a retained station being alerted by the control centre to going mobile is usually under 5-6 minutes.

marzic

I am sorry to hear about your home, i cant imagine how difficult it must have been emotionally as well as everything else. I wouldnt blame you for not wanting to pay it, but if i may make a suggestion, be proactive in not paying it. what i mean is, write to them and explain all of your reasons for dissatisfaction, the poor level of service, miscommunications, brake-downs, etc. if you just ignore the bill the council will likely pursue it, and if you have no record of your complaint, you may find that if it went to court that you may still have to pay plus costs.

Making a phone call and saying i dont want to pay is not good enough, there needs to be a paper trail and you have a better chance of success if you justify your case with the facts. Get a hold of the councils customer policy document regarding the fire service, ie time frames from time of call, response times etc. i would suggest that you try, if possible maybe through freedom of information, to get the records of the call out from the fire station. I know its hassle that you dont need, but thats what you have to do in this country. It might be worth talking to a local town/ county councillor who might give you guidance on who to address/ contact. On the matter of your insurance, if you havent had payment yet, be sure to claim for every thing thats on your policy, as much as is possible! good luck

Our man in Havana

It would be very rare for a council to presue a fire brigade charge in the courts. They automatically assume that an insurance company will pay and when it doesn't happen they tend to drop it. That has been my experience in the past.

TheNog

Karlitosway1978 wrote: »

Yes but the Gardai are working fulltime anyway and did your parents have to stop off at the firestation, get geared up and arrive with fire fighting equipment? No and thats the difference.

I think your missing the point Karlito. If civdefs info is correct which I was reckoning to be, then the 30 minutes delay contributing to a breakdown of a fire truck (can happen) with another truck having a broken radio (coincidence- I don;t think so) is pretty unacceptable.

It is too early to lay this blame squarely on the retained Fire Brigade near Angelfires home. It could be a problem with funding from the council.

I was lucky enough to work with Drogeda Fire Brigade for 2 weeks on work experience and although it is a full time station, the rigorous tests they did at the start of every shift was impressive. I'm hoping these same tests are done in retained stations frequently.

Eru

No the point is that he is unhappy with the service but his reasoning is flawed because his complaint centers on the fact that the fire service didnt get there as fast as other people.

Im merely pointing out that a part time fire service dont go direct to a fire from their homes, they arent working and ready to go and they are the ones that need to make a stop to get prepared.

If he is unhappy about what happened fair enough but complaining because his parents got there first is neither fair nor realistic. We all need to remember that retained firemen often put the fire service before their primary occupations. The last lad I spoke with told me he went from job to job because the bosses got fed up with him running off to put out fires and as a result he never really had a 'career' so to speak.

He should complain that the service itself is not adequate for the needs of the area and get behind the firemen in question not simple give out. Besides, even emergency service equipment and vehicles break down.

Our man in Havana

In my personal experience, I had a fire a couple of years ago. I live 4 miles from the nearest station which is a retained service. They were with me in 10 mins.

TheNog

Karlitosway1978 wrote: »

No the point is that he is unhappy with the service but his reasoning is flawed because his complaint centers on the fact that the fire service didnt get there as fast as other people.

Im merely pointing out that a part time fire service dont go direct to a fire from their homes, they arent working and ready to go and they are the ones that need to make a stop to get prepared.

Assuming that everyone knows that the retained firemen must go to the station first and again assuming that
5-6 minutes for a call out from fire control,
5-8 minutes for all firemen to reach the station and even though Angelfire's house is 5 minutes way by car we could give
7-8 minutes for a truck.

That's about 17-22 minutes response time. Suppose factoring in the broken down truck and radio problem with the other truck could extend that time to the 30 minutes.

A truck breaking down is understandable but a radio as well on the same night on another truck kinda points to an underlying problem to me. Whether that be insufficient funding from the council or not enough checks being done on the equipment.

Karlitosway1978 wrote: »

If he is unhappy about what happened fair enough but complaining because his parents got there first is neither fair nor realistic. We all need to remember that retained firemen often put the fire service before their primary occupations. The last lad I spoke with told me he went from job to job because the bosses got fed up with him running off to put out fires and as a result he never really had a 'career' so to speak.

I agree with ye here and that's why I mentioned a possible problem with funding from the council. Not having the proper equipment or not having present equipment properly maintained or funded is of course going to impact response times.

Karlitosway1978 wrote: »

He should complain that the service itself is not adequate for the needs of the area and get behind the firemen in question not simple give out. Besides, even emergency service equipment and vehicles break down.

It will be a process of elimination for whoever wants to delve deeper into it. Whose at fault, the fire brigade or the council. I have my money on the council.


Also Angelfire is a woman. She told me via PM about being 6ft, blonde hair and a long legs. Actually must see if she pm'ed me a pic of those long legs

*wanders off to PM box*

angelfire9

TheNog wrote: »

Assuming that everyone knows that the retained firemen must go to the station first and again assuming that
5-6 minutes for a call out from fire control,
5-8 minutes for all firemen to reach the station and even though Angelfire's house is 5 minutes way by car we could give
7-8 minutes for a truck.

That's about 17-22 minutes response time. Suppose factoring in the broken down truck and radio problem with the other truck could extend that time to the 30 minutes.

A truck breaking down is understandable but a radio as well on the same night on another truck kinda points to an underlying problem to me. Whether that be insufficient funding from the council or not enough checks being done on the equipment.

I agree with ye here and that's why I mentioned a possible problem with funding from the council. Not having the proper equipment or not having present equipment properly maintained or funded is of course going to impact response times.

It will be a process of elimination for whoever wants to delve deeper into it. Whose at fault, the fire brigade or the council. I have my money on the council.

Also Angelfire is a woman. She told me via PM about being 6ft, blonde hair and a long legs. Actually must see if she pm'ed me a pic of those long legs

*wanders off to PM box*

Actually i'm a brunette but the 6ft and female part you got right! :pac:

Now, according to Clare Co. Co. customer's charter a domestic fire within the ennis town limits is supposed to have a fire tender in attendance within 15 minutes of the call out, all retained fire officers are supposed to live within 5 minutes of the station (and that's five minutes during peak travel times)
I would imagine that travelling at 2.20am would be that bit quicker than say 8.55am when traffic is mental so i maintain that a 30 minute response time is not good enough.
I have a copy of the 999 tape and a copy of the station officer's log and strangely enough the fire officer's log shows them arriving at my house at 2.42am but the 6 gardai in attendance as well as the time of the ambulance call out and the word of 4 of my family members all agree it was after 2.55am when the actually got there!
Serious case of CYA in the Co. Co. and fire service going on here!

TheNog

angelfire9 wrote: »

Serious case of CYA in the Co. Co. and fire service going on here!

CYA???

explain please, I'm old

angelfire9

TheNog wrote: »

CYA???

explain please, I'm old

Ah you're not really, maybe tis a country thing :pac:
CYA= Cover Your Ass

TheNog

angelfire9 wrote: »

Ah you're not really,

must ... resist... big...head...symdrome...from...tall...brunette

angelfire9

TheNog wrote: »

must ... resist... big...head...symdrome...from...tall...brunette

:pac:

Eru

angelfire9 wrote: »

Actually i'm a brunette but the 6ft and female part you got right! :pac:

Now, according to Clare Co. Co. customer's charter a domestic fire within the ennis town limits is supposed to have a fire tender in attendance within 15 minutes of the call out, all retained fire officers are supposed to live within 5 minutes of the station (and that's five minutes during peak travel times)
I would imagine that travelling at 2.20am would be that bit quicker than say 8.55am when traffic is mental so i maintain that a 30 minute response time is not good enough.
I have a copy of the 999 tape and a copy of the station officer's log and strangely enough the fire officer's log shows them arriving at my house at 2.42am but the 6 gardai in attendance as well as the time of the ambulance call out and the word of 4 of my family members all agree it was after 2.55am when the actually got there!
Serious case of CYA in the Co. Co. and fire service going on here!

Pardon me?

angelfire9

Karlitosway1978 wrote: »

Pardon me?

What?