State water company Uisce Éireann paid more than €9.3 million in compensation for personal injury and damage to property over the last five years, figures show.
Uisce Éireann will receive €1.4 billion extra from the Government to aid in building water supply and treatment needed to support new home building, as part of Budget 2026 spending.
The company paid €9.32 million in compensation for personal injury and damage to properties from 2020 to July this year, details released to Cynthia Ní Mhurchú, Fianna Fáil member of the European Parliament (MEP), under the Freedom of Information Act show.
Uisce Éireann also spent €364,422 on public relations consultants over three years to 2024, despite having its own media and communications staff, according to the same figures.
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Ms Ní Mhurchú noted that spending in these two areas amounted to almost €10 million, which she claimed would pay for up to 200 extra gardaí in one year.
“The public need confidence that the vast sums of taxpayers’ money the Government is investing in Uisce Éireann and other public bodies are not wasted,” said the MEP.
However, Uisce Éireann responded that its compensation bill for the period compares favourably with other public bodies.
A statement pointed out that it serves more than 80 per cent of the population, has 93,000km of pipes and 8,000-plus assets.
“The utility manages hundreds of ongoing projects with capital investment of over €4.5 billion in the period 2020 to 2024,” Uisce Éireann said.
“Any organisation with this scale and impact of essential activity would expect to see a certain level of legal claims, including personal injury and property compensation.”
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All claims are thoroughly investigated and managed to ensure responsible use of public cash, the company stressed.
Reports in January showed that Dublin’s four local councils, which serve around 1.5 million people, paid €24 million in compensation between November 2022 and November 2024.
Uisce Éireann confirmed that it used external PR agencies on a limited and selective basis, with communications mainly managed by its own staff.
“All spending follows strict procurement rules,” it said.
Outside agencies hired by the company included Gibney Communications and a “tri-party service” led by RPS Ltd with Kano Communications and Communique International.
Ms Ní Mhurchú maintained that she “warmly welcomed” the budget decision to earmark €1.4 billion for the State company.
She also conceded that some spending on areas such as compensation and PR was inevitable.
Still, the MEP added that the utility should spend money wisely.
Jack Chambers, Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, announced in Budget 2026 earlier this month that Uisce Éireann would get €1.4 billion to bolster existing networks and support new housing.
The company recently highlighted the challenges it faced in providing water supply and treatment services needed to meet Government housing targets.
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