Dept of Ag won't pay DAS on commonage land

ihatewinter

Hi everyone,

Just wondered if anyone could help me. I started farming on my own last year so applied for DAS on owned land and commonage. No entitlements just DAS. One problem is they want me to prove my owned land is not commonage. I submitted maps twice to them (old black and white types) and they are still looking for proof. I have no access to digital maps as the previous owner never claimed any payments when the digital mapping was been completed. Is there any where I can get these maps myself.

Another problem related to the commonage. I stated I had access to commonage on a LETTER with the form but didn't state it on the form as I had no access to maps, land parcel number or commonage fraction. I did submit an old letter from previous owner with commonage share on it (solicitors letter). I went into Teagasc and the regional director of an area (won't say who) told me all vesting orders and maps were destroyed either in the 1916 Rising or War of Independence so no way of showing I had access even though they date from the 30's. Didn't know.

Then in October, they said I had filled the form out wrong. I have two land parcels and the Department put the commonage land parcel as one of my own. Not knowing the land parcel was the commonage, I stated that was not a land parcel of mine and put my two owned parcels in. They said the commonage parcel was not permanent pasture as I had put down for my owned parcel. That was the confusion. Local farmers only have a copy of the vesting order, no maps either. I submitted the Vesting Order, Maps of Commonage and Fraction with the third form I had to fill out in January. All forms were correct because the same information was on the first, second and third except for the permanent pasture and the third form had all information about commonage that the first two didn't have.

The Department are now saying I will not get paid DAS on commonage as I did not submit it on the form. Stupidly I thought they would have the some information on the commonage from the old owner.

Have I a leg to stand on with the Department over the commonage. There is an appeals committee with new entrants as one of the categories to appeal. I started farming last January and didn't know DAS was paid on commonage till last April and then didn't know information was available till the department of agriculture told me in January. Any help would be grateful

Conmaicne Mara

Solicitor or TD, save the ****ing around.

ihatewinter

Got an email this morning saying they want proof of ownership. TWICE these have been submitted, they're saying they never received it.

I don't have the finance to fight it with a solicitor, cost too much. TD around here wouldn't bother with something like that, too lazy

ABlur

Depends on where you're located but the IFA might be worth a shout.

rancher

ihatewinter wrote: »

Got an email this morning saying they want proof of ownership. TWICE these have been submitted, they're saying they never received it.

I don't have the finance to fight it with a solicitor, cost too much. TD around here wouldn't bother with something like that, too lazy

This is the public service you're dealing with, hand in the proof of owner ship and get a receipt and get a receipt for everything else they ask for

ihatewinter

Well after the mess of last year, I'm now in the same situation. After getting an adviser to fill in my application form, to make sure everything was correct, the Department still have my enclosed land as commonage and I'm over claiming on 3 parcels. Sick of them.

ihatewinter

Well on the phone again to them today. They managed to locate the maps I sent in with my application form, so both land parcels have now been changed from commonage to enclosed land. Delighted with that.

Problem is with the actual commonage, they are saying there are too many claiming and that the amount claimed exceeds the total acreage. I'm probably the cause of that, as it was never claimed by my family before. I asked them 'is a Vesting Order enough to proof ownership' and said no. So another one came on the phone and said it was up to someone in Portlaose to decide who is entitled to it, even though the land is in my family and never changed owners. Do your head in. May wait a week and then probe them from more information.