Fire Brigade Operational Charges
It is the policy of Donegal County Council to levy charges against the beneficiary of the service (not necessarily the caller) provided by the Fire Service in relation to emergency incidents which they attend.
The charges are made pursuant to Section 35 (3) of the Fire Services Act 1981 & 2003 together with the provisions of the Local Government (Financial Provisions) (No 2) Act, 1983 and the Local Government Financial Provisions Act 2000. An invoice is therefore issued to the person who is the beneficiary of the service.
The amounts below are set for the provision of fire brigade operational services.
|
Service
|
Service Description |
Charge |
|
Chimney Fire |
Domestic fire confined to the chimney / flue |
€250.00 per appliance
|
|
House Fire (Domestic Incidents) |
All domestic incidents (other than chimney fires) to include house fires, domestic shed/garage, mobile homes, flats/apartments, chalet and alarm calls to domestic homes. Repeated call outs to domestic alarms will be subject to the full commercial rate.
|
€500.00 per appliance |
|
Commercial Incident |
Incidents at commercial properties including factories, warehouses, hospitals, schools, special services and including attendance at road traffic collisions, vehicle fires, alarm calls, gorse fires, oil spills, incidents attended outside the County, domestic garages where they are used for non domestic purposes or used to store non domestic equipment.
|
full cost of incident plus 30% for equipment, consumables and administration |
|
Copy of Fire Report |
Request for fire reports from customers, Insurance Companies Assessors and Solicitors. Requests for copies of Fire Reports to be made in writing to the Chief Fire Officer.
|
€100.00 |
|
Meeting with Fire Service Personnel |
Meetings in connection with provided Fire Reports. Requests for meetings to be made in writing to the Chief Fire Officer.
|
€100.00 |
There are a number of different payment options for invoices:
- Over the phone by calling our Call Centre on 074-91 53900 and asking for the Cash Office (where they will take a card payment and provide a receipt number), or
- By cash or cheque (made payable to Donegal County Council) and returned to any Public Service Centre or to Fire Brigade HQ, High Road, Letterkenny, F92 XV50 or
- By EFT online (via Donegal County Council bank details as below).
|
Account Name: |
Donegal County Council |
|
Bank Name: |
AIB |
|
Bank Address: |
The Diamond, Donegal Town, Co. Donegal |
|
Sort Code: |
93-73-04 |
|
Account No: |
40009074 |
|
IBAN: |
IE35AIBK93730440009074 |
|
BIC No: |
AIBKIE2D |
|
VAT No: |
8F28103W |
Note: Please quote Fire Service Customer No. and/ or reference number when making payment to ensure the correct allocation of your payment.
Exemptions from Fire Service Charges will apply in the following cases:
- Incidents involving fatalities where no insurance applies.
- Second brigade on route and a “Stop Message” is received.
- Brigade on standby only.
- Call to a re-ignition within 1 hour.
- If a caller to an incident is not the recipient or beneficiary of the service and no action is taken by the brigade.
- Attendance by additional brigades at an incident where the additional brigade is not required.
- Flooding on land or buildings where the water originated from the public road.
- Third party collision into a parked vehicle – there is no charge to the owner of the parked vehicle.
- Fires that has spread onto third party property.
- Bin fires or skip fires where responsibility for fire cannot be attributed to an individual.
- Obstacle burning on road, i.e. tyres, hay, etc. where responsibility for fire cannot be attributed to an individual.
- Incidents where owner details cannot be determined for example rubbish fires on open ground.
A Waiver Scheme will apply to domestic incidents where such incidents are not covered by insurance and where Social Welfare is the only form of income or where particular hardship exists. Documentary evidence of Social Welfare Income must be provided.
In the case of domestic incidents that are covered by household insurance and where there is an excess on the policy, the amount of the excess may be waived in cases of such hardship.
For domestic incidents involving recipients of Social Welfare who are also working part-time and have no insurance cover, the invoice may be reduced to 75%.
In cases of road traffic collisions and vehicle fires where the insurance company has paid the policy limit, the remaining amount may be waived. This waiver is subject to a minimum payment of 25% if the individual’s only source of income is Social Welfare or if there is evidence of particular hardship.
In the case of road traffic collisions and vehicle fires where the recipient is on Social Welfare and is also working part-time and no contribution has been received from the Insurance Company the invoice may be reduced to 75%.
A waiver or reduction may be granted in exceptional circumstances beyond those previously mentioned, to be determined on a case-by-case basis where evidence of hardship is provided.
To qualify for the reduction scheme, you must provide documentary evidence of your income.