Fire Brigade Attendance Charges

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Under the Fire Services Act, 1981 “a fire authority shall be entitled to charge users or beneficiaries of a fire service for services which it provides.” 

An invoice will be sent for each incident which Galway Fire & Rescue Service is alerted to with the following exceptions:

• Fatality
• Charitable organisations
• Incidents where we cannot determine the owner’s details, for example rubbish fires on open ground
• Incidents involving cars with foreign registration numbers unless owner details are given on report
• Reports with no details, for example call to RTC but call cancelled before arrival.

Rates of fire service charges

The rates of Fire Service Charges have been set out by Galway County Council under manager’s order number 7646. 

The current fees are set out in the downloadable Manager's Order below and came into effect from 1st January 2012:

Fees - Fire Brigade Attendance (Jan 2012)

What you should do once you receive an invoice

In cases where the property/vehicle is covered by insurance, you are advised to contact your insurance company as they may be in a position to cover the charge.

There are a number of different payment options for invoices for Fire Service Charges:

1. Detach the remittance slip from the bottom of the invoice and post it with your payment to the Finance Section, Galway County Council, Prospect Hill, Galway.
2. To make payment in person please go to the cash desk which is situated on the ground floor of Galway County Council, Prospect Hill, Galway.
3. To make payment by laser or credit card contact the cash desk in Galway County Council on 091 509032, quoting the invoice number for the fire service charge.
4. If you wish to make payment by Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT), Galway County Council’s bank details are as follows: Bank of Ireland, Eyre Square, Account Number 10051856, Sort Code 90 38 16. Please quote the invoice number for the Fire Service Charge on the EFT so that your payment can be recognised.

In cases where the property is not covered by insurance and you are not in a position to pay the charge you may apply for a waiver. The waiver system is in place for old age pensioners, people in receipt of social welfare or people on a low income. If you feel you may be eligible for a waiver please contact Galway County Council on 091 509579 to request a waiver form:

Waiver Scheme‌

An invoice will only be cancelled in the following circumstances:

• When two or more parties are involved in a road traffic collision and payment is received from one party
• The invoicee has passed away.