This article is from page 50 of the 2013-12-31 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 50 JPG
NEARLY 600 hundred years to pay off a loan – that was the judgment handed how in Ennis District Court on November 1 when Judge Michael Durcan ordered that a financiallystrapped mother of five should only pay € 5 a month on credit union loan.
The previous month the credit un- ion made an application before Ennis District Court last month for an installment order against the woman for a debt of € 35,070.76.
After hearing of the woman’s financial circumstances in which she is struggling to pay bills and keep five children, three of whom were in third level education, Judge Durcan told her his conscience would not allow him to agree to her offer to repay € 20 a month to the credit union. Instead Judge Durcan reduced the figure to € 5 a month.
“This woman is doing a fantastic service to the State and to her family,” said Judge Durcan, who made an order reducing the amount the woman must pay back on a monthly basis.
He ordered she pay back € 5 a month to the credit union. It could take the woman up to 583 years to repay the loan in total.
The woman became emotional as she thanked Judge Durcan for his ruling. On this repayment schedule the loan would notionally be repaid in 583 years.
She told the court she would pay the installment every month.