In the Republic of Ireland, a new, improved program has been launched for people whose homes have collapsed due to faulty blocks.
Financial assistance will be provided to homeowners in the affected counties of Donegal, Mayo, Clare, and Limerick who have seen their homes collapse as a result of faulty mica blocks.
As a result of the mineral absorbing water, walls may start to crumble and crack.
The program's cap, according to the Irish government, will be €420,000 (£357,500).
The program is currently accepting new applications.
Mica absorbs water, which can cause walls to start to crack and fall down in thousands of homes.
In order to look into issues with homes impacted by mica and another mineral, pyrite, a panel of experts was established in the Republic of Ireland in 2016.
The Irish government approved a €20 million (£17 point 2 million) repair program in 2019.
However, many homeowners argued that the plan was ineffective and demanded full compensation.
The previous program required eligible homeowners to pay 10% of repairs and any outstanding mortgage payments, with the government covering the remaining 90% of the cost.
A 10% tax on concrete blocks was announced as part of the Irish government's budget in September.
The government made a significant number of changes to the prior plan in November 2021.
Housing Minister Darragh O'Brien stated that the difficulty affected households have encountered in both financial and personal terms "has been very significant these past number of years" when announcing the enhanced program.
For those who need to remediate their homes, "the improved package of measures under this considerably enhanced scheme will mark a new beginning.".
There are transitional plans in place to move applicants from the old program to the new program.
The improvements made under the new scheme will also be available retroactively to current applicants under the original program, according to the minister.
You can find information on the application procedure here, external, for homeowners who are applying for the first time as well as for homeowners who applied under the previous program.
