ACC Bank cannot repossess home of bankrupt couple

ACC Bank is not entitled to take possession of a couple’s home which was part of a failed spa and hotel development, the High Court has ruled.

Declan and Bernadette Fagan were declared bankrupt over a €5.7m judgment arising out of their failure to repay loans for the development of the Temple House Spa in Moate, Co Westmeath, but they objected to the bank’s bid to take possession of the part of the property which comprises their home.

Yesterday, Ms Justice Mary Finlay Geoghegan ruled they were entitled to the benefit of recent rulings exposing a loophole in repossession law.