Court heards of monies owed by farmer to agricultural contractor

When an agricultural contractor went to collect money owed to him for carrying out six days’ work on a farm, the farmer told him to "eff off", Navan District Court heard last week.

Sean Keogan, Liscarton, Navan, sued Pat Lynch, Batterstown House, Proudstown Road, Navan for €2,724 which he said was owed for the work he carried out. Mr Lynch did not appear in court.

Mr Keogan gave evidence that he had been engaged by Mr Lynch to do the work on the farm and they had agreed a price in October 2020. He had done five days’ work and while his machine was on Mr Lynch’s land on the sixth day, Mr Lynch would not let him do any work. He had sent him a bill in November 2020 but when he went to collect it "he told me to eff off".

Mr Keogan’s wife Anne said that when she went to see Mr Lynch about the bill in February 2021 "he wasn’t forthcoming with the money".

"I presented him with the bill and he said it was none of my business and to get out of the yard and he would deal with it. I left the bill on a branch of a tree. He wasn’t very nice. He told me to leave the yard and to close the gate behind me".

Mr Keogan was recalled to the witness box and told the judge the agreed price was €260 per day but that Mr Lynch had forgotten about the VAT. He had also told him he wasn’t paying for the delivery or collection of machinery. Mr Keogan admitted damaging two bars of a gate belonging to Mr Lynch as he manoeuvred the machinery but he said that Mr Lynch had damaged a wing mirror on his jeep but that he had "let that go". He told the judge "I’m not looking for sympathy but I had a stroke a few months before that and I spent months looking out the window and the bills mounting up. I needed the money I was owed."

The judge said that she was satisfied with the evidence given. Mr Lynch had been given every opportunity to pay the money he owed. She granted Mr Keogan a decree for €2,274 in addition to costs in the case.