The Housing (Northern Ireland) Order 1992

Carrying out of works by the Executive N.I.

84.—(1) If a notice under Article 79, 80 or 81 or the following provisions of this Article or paragraph 2 of Schedule 4 is not complied with, the Executive may do the work required to be done by the notice.

(2) Compliance with a notice means beginning and completing the works specified in the notice—

(a) if no appeal is brought against the notice, not later than such date and within such period as is specified in the notice;

(b) if an appeal is brought against the notice and is not withdrawn, not later than such date and within such period as may be fixed by the court determining the appeal; and

(c) if an appeal brought against the notice is withdrawn, not later than the twenty-first day after the date of withdrawal of the appeal and within such period (beginning on that twenty-first day) as is specified in the notice.

(3) If, before the expiry of the period which under paragraph (2) is appropriate for completion of the works specified in the notice, it appears to the Executive that reasonable progress is not being made towards compliance with the notice, the Executive may itself do the work required to be done by the notice.

(4) Not less than 7 days before the Executive enters any house for the purpose of doing any works by virtue of paragraph (1) or (3), it shall serve notice of its intention to do so on the person on whom the notice referred to in paragraph (1) was served and, if it thinks fit, also on any other owner of the house.

(5) If, after the Executive has served notice under paragraph (4), the works are in fact carried out (otherwise than by the Executive), any administrative and other expenses incurred by the Executive with a view to doing the work itself in accordance with paragraph (1) or (3) shall be treated for the purposes of the following provisions of this Article as expenses incurred by it under this Article in carrying out the works in a case where the notice referred to in paragraph (1) has not been complied with.

(6) Notwithstanding anything in paragraph (1), if, before the expiration of the time mentioned in that paragraph, the person on whom the notice was served notifies the Executive in writing that he is not able to do the work in question, the Executive may, if it considers fit, do the work forthwith.

(7) Any expenses reasonably incurred by the Executive under this Article, together with interest at the prescribed rate from the date when a demand for the expenses is served until payment, may, except so far as they are by any direction of the court on appeal recoverable under an order of the court, be recovered by it summarily as a civil debt from the person on whom the notice was served or, if he was served with the notice in his capacity only as an agent or trustee for some other person, then either from him or from that other person, or as to part from him and as to the remainder from that other person; but if the person on whom the notice is served proves that he—

(a) was served with the notice in his capacity only as an agent or trustee for some other person; and

(b) has not, and since the date of the service on him of the demand has not had, in his hands on behalf of that other person, sufficient money to discharge the whole demand of the Executive;

his liability shall be limited to the total amount of the money which he has, or has had, in his hands as aforesaid.

(8) Any expenses recoverable by the Executive under paragraph (7), together with interest accrued due thereon, shall, until recovered, be a charge on the estate in the premises of the person on whom the notice was served; but, if that person was only properly served with the notice as being an agent or trustee for some other person, those expenses shall be a charge on the estate (if any) in the premises of that other person, and not on that of the first-mentioned person.

(9) The charge under paragraph (8) may be recovered by the same means and in the like manner in all respects as if it were a mortgage by deed created by the owner of the estate in favour of the Executive, and, for the recovery thereof, the Executive may exercise the powers conferred by sections 19, 21 and 22 of the Conveyancing Act 1881F1 on mortgages by deed.

(10) If the Executive applies to a court of summary jurisdiction and satisfies the court—

(a) that any expenses reasonably incurred by it under this Article (with the interest accrued due thereon) have not been, and are unlikely to be, recovered; and

(b) that some person is profiting by the execution of the works in respect of which the expenses were incurred to obtain rents or other payments which would not have been obtainable if the number of persons living in the house was limited to that appropriate for the house in its state before the works were executed;

the court may, if satisfied that that person has had proper notice of the application, order him to make such payment or payments to the Executive as appear to the court to be just.

(11) In all summary proceedings by the Executive for the recovery of expenses under this Article, the time within which the proceedings may be taken shall be reckoned from the date of the service of the demand.

(12) In proceedings by the Executive for the recovery of any expenses under paragraph (7), it shall not be open to the defendant to raise any question which he could have raised on an appeal under this Part against the notice requiring the execution of the works.

F1 1881 c.41