Ireland: templates and forms

For a member in Ireland who wants to end a gym membership, a club or a paid subscription. The notice ends the contract on the basis you choose — its own notice terms, the end of the minimum term, or the 14-day right to cancel a contract made online, by phone or away from the trader's premises — and asks the provider to take no payment after the last one due. Cancelling the direct debit alone does not end the contract. Send it the way the contract names, or by registered post (An Post) or email, and keep proof of sending.

For a traveller whose package holiday — transport and accommodation, or other travel services, sold together — was not as booked. The letter tells the organiser that it is responsible for every service in the package under the European Union (Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements) Regulations 2019 (S.I. No. 80 of 2019, as amended), and claims a price reduction and compensation, with a total and 14 days to reply. The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) explains package holiday rights free of charge. Send it by registered post (An Post) or, where accepted, by email, and keep proof of sending.

For a business in Ireland owed money by another business or a public body on an unpaid invoice. The letter sets out the debt, claims late payment interest at the ECB rate plus eight points and the fixed compensation of €40, €70 or €100 under S.I. No. 580 of 2012, gives 14 days to pay or dispute, and says that otherwise you will issue court proceedings without further notice. The Small Claims procedure does not take unpaid invoices. Send it by registered post (An Post) and by email.

For a consumer in Ireland whose goods from a shop or online trader turn out faulty, not as described or not fit for their purpose. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2022 you can end the contract for a full refund within 30 days of delivery, or ask for a repair or replacement; if that fails, a refund or a price reduction follows. The letter states the fault and your choice, and gives the trader 14 days to reply before the Small Claims procedure (claims up to €2,000). The CCPC explains these rights free. Send it to the seller, not the manufacturer, by registered post (An Post) or email.

For a consumer in Ireland whose order from an online or high-street trader has not arrived. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2022 the trader must deliver as agreed or, if no time was agreed, within 30 days, and the goods stay at its risk until you have them, so a parcel lost on the way is its problem. The letter gives a final 14 days to deliver, after which you treat the contract as ended and a full refund is due, then the Small Claims procedure (up to €2,000). Send it by email and by registered post (An Post).

For a passenger whose flight arrived three hours or more late, was cancelled with less than 14 days' notice, or who was denied boarding, on a flight covered by Regulation (EC) No 261/2004: every flight from an EU airport, and flights into the EU on an EU airline. The letter claims the fixed compensation — €250, €400 or €600 per passenger, by distance — from the airline that operated the flight. The airline's own claim form and the EU complaint form are free and do the same job. Send it by registered post (An Post) or, where accepted, by email, and keep proof of sending.

For a consumer in Ireland whose complaint to a shop, trader or service provider has got nowhere — a refund refused, a deposit kept, money owed for faulty goods or poor work. The letter sets out what happened and the amount, lists your documents, gives the business 14 days to pay or reply, asks for its legal name and registered address, and says that otherwise you will apply to the Small Claims procedure of the District Court, which deals with consumer claims of up to €2,000. Send it by registered post (An Post) or by email, and keep proof.

For a consumer in Ireland whose builder, plumber, electrician, garage or other trader did the work badly or not as agreed. Under Part 4 of the Consumer Rights Act 2022 a service must be supplied with reasonable care and skill; the letter asks for the work to be put right at the trader's cost or, where that is impossible or not done, for a price reduction or to end the contract (section 86). It gives 14 days to reply before the Small Claims procedure (up to €2,000). Send it by registered post (An Post) with photos.

For a customer in Ireland with a problem with a mobile, landline or broadband provider: a slow or broken service, wrong bills, charges you did not agree to, or trouble moving or switching. The letter is the formal complaint ComReg asks you to make first, and asks for a complaint reference number. If the provider does not resolve it within 10 working days, or you are not satisfied with its response, ComReg's Consumer Care team can take it up free. Send it by email or through the provider's complaints channel.

For a household customer in Ireland with a problem with an electricity or gas supplier: a high or estimated bill, a wrong meter reading, a payment taken twice, trouble switching, or arrears you dispute. The letter is the formal complaint under the supplier's own complaints code. If its final response does not settle it, the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) Customer Care Team takes the complaint free. Send it by email or registered post (An Post), with a meter reading.

For a business or public-body client and a self-employed consultant or freelancer in Ireland, working on their own account or through their own company; not for a private person hiring for personal use. The agreement covers the services, fees and invoices, expenses, the right to send a substitute, who owns the work, confidentiality, liability, insurance and ending the contract, under Irish law. Its wording does not decide employment status, which follows how the work is actually done under the Supreme Court's five questions in Karshan, so each party should take advice if the status is unclear.

For a consumer in Ireland who bought a used car from a dealer and found a fault. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2022 the car must conform to the contract, taking its age, mileage and price into account. The letter describes the fault and asks for the remedy you choose: ending the contract for a refund within 30 days of delivery, a repair or replacement, or, after a failed repair, a refund or a price reduction. It gives the dealer 14 days to reply, then the Small Claims procedure (claims up to €2,000). The CCPC explains these rights free. Not for a private sale. Send it by registered post (An Post).

For an employee in Ireland asking to work from home, or, as a parent or carer, to change their hours or pattern for caring. The request names the right it uses (the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023, or section 13B of the Parental Leave Act 1998), your current and proposed arrangement, the start date, how long it would last, the place for remote work and your reasons. Send it at least eight weeks before the start; your employer must reply within four weeks, or eight at most.

For a landlord, letting agent and tenant in Ireland at the start of a tenancy. A room-by-room record of the home's condition, the furniture and appliances, meter readings, keys and smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, with a reference to dated photos, signed by both sides. It is the evidence the Residential Tenancies Board looks at if the deposit is disputed at the end. The tenant may add written comments within seven days; each side keeps a signed copy.

For someone in Ireland chased by a debt collector or debt purchaser for a debt they do not recognise, dispute, or believe is more than six years old. The reply acknowledges nothing and offers nothing: it asks for proof — the agreement, a statement of account, the last payment and the transfer of the debt — or says the debt is statute-barred under section 11 of the Statute of Limitations 1957, and asks the firm to write only. MABS gives free, confidential help with debt. Send it by registered post (An Post) and keep a copy.

For a private tenant in Ireland whose rented home needs repairs: damp and mould, a broken boiler, leaks, faulty electrics. The letter lists each problem in writing, with dated photos, recalls the landlord's duty to repair under section 12 of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 and the minimum standards for rented houses, asks for an inspection within 14 days, and confirms you will keep paying the rent. If nothing is done, the council can inspect and the RTB's dispute service is open. Send it by email or registered post.

For a private person in Ireland owed money by another person — an unrepaid loan, a share of a bill, money paid for something never handed over. The letter sets out what the money is for and the amount, gives 14 days to pay or explain, invites a proposal to pay in instalments, and says that otherwise you will issue court proceedings without further notice. The Small Claims procedure does not take debts, so a claim of up to €15,000 goes to the District Court. Send it by registered post (An Post) and keep proof.

For a parent or guardian in Ireland who is not going on the trip: a signed letter consenting to the child travelling abroad with the other parent, grandparents, a school or another family. Immigration officers and airlines may ask for evidence of the absent parent's consent, and there is no State form for it. The letter names the child, the trip and the dates, and gives your phone number so that it can be checked. Give it to the adult travelling, with a copy of your passport. A child's passport application uses the Passport Service's own free consent forms instead.

For an employee in Ireland who wants a workplace problem dealt with formally: treatment by a manager or colleague, pay, hours, duties or conditions. The letter raises a formal grievance under your employer's procedure and the Code of Practice on Grievance and Disciplinary Procedures, sets out what happened and what you want done, asks for a meeting and the right to bring a colleague or trade union representative, and asks for the outcome in writing. Hand it in or email it.

For a tenant in Ireland who has moved out and is still waiting for the deposit, or got back less than expected. The letter to the landlord or letting agent gives the date the tenancy ended and the deposit paid, recalls that a deposit must be returned promptly less only lawful deductions, asks for it within 14 days or a written list of deductions with evidence, and says which you dispute. If nothing comes, the next step is the Residential Tenancies Board's dispute service. Send it by email or registered post.

For someone in Ireland who disagrees with a Department of Social Protection decision on a payment such as Jobseeker's, Illness Benefit, Disability Allowance or Carer's Allowance. It asks the Deciding Officer to review the decision, with new facts or evidence. A review has no time limit, but it does not replace an appeal: the free SWAO1 form, or the online appeal, must reach the Social Welfare Appeals Office within 60 days, and you can do both. Post it by registered post (An Post) or hand it in. Sold blank, as it may hold health data.

For a policyholder in Ireland whose insurer has refused, underpaid or delayed a claim, cancelled a policy or charged unfairly — car, home, travel, health or other insurance. The letter is a formal complaint under the insurer's complaints procedure and asks for the reports its decision relied on. Under the Central Bank's Consumer Protection Code the insurer acknowledges it and gives a final response; after that, you can go free to the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman. Send it by email or registered post (An Post).

For an employee in Ireland asking for paid annual leave on particular dates. The letter gives the first and last day and the number of working days, notes that under the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 your employer sets the times of leave after consulting you at least a month ahead and taking your family responsibilities and rest into account, and asks for written approval or other dates. Hand it in or email it, as your workplace does.

For someone in Ireland who paid by debit or credit card and did not get what they paid for — goods never delivered, faulty or not as described, a refund never paid, a payment taken twice — and could not settle it with the trader. The letter asks the card provider to raise a chargeback under the card scheme's rules and to answer in writing. Many providers have a free online dispute form that does the same job; ask the trader first.