A Co Cavan sub-postmaster whose contract with An Post was terminated two years ago yesterday began a High Court action to have the decision set aside. Mr Sean Tierney, of Termon, Virginia, had his sub-postmaster's contract with An Post rescinded on July 26th, 1996, following an appeal into allegations against him. These centred on alleged delays in remittances of monies in respect of telephone accounts held by two customers.
An Post says Mr Tierney's contract was lawfully terminated; that it was entitled to end the contract because of Mr Tierney's failure to comply with it; and that the irregularities were neither minor nor administrative.
Mr Dermot Kelly SC, for Mr Tierney, said his client operated a general grocery store alongside the post office and sometimes customers would pay for services in the post office and store by way of one cheque. Mr Tierney offered these services as the nearest town was seven miles away.
In October 1995, he received a memorandum from Kells post office asking him for explanations about the telephone accounts of two customers. The following month, he gave a statement in which he said a broken photocopier accounted for the first delay in remitting the money, with something similar occurring in the second case.
By January 15th, 1996, he received a letter from An Post saying the standard of accounting in his sub-post office was a matter of concern. Two months later it again wrote to his client saying it was terminating his contract. He appealed this decision but at the appeal hearing no charges against him were either read out or furnished to him. On July 10th, 1996, his appeal was dismissed and he was ordered to close his sub-post office on July 26th.
Mr Kelly said his client was entitled to be fully informed of the allegations and the evidence An Post relied upon to support the charges against him. Furthermore, the penalty imposed by An Post, the termination of his contract, was disproportionate to the matters complained of.
Cross-examined by Maurice Gaffney SC, for An Post, Mr Tierney said it was not practical to remit monies to Kells post office on a daily basis for all telephone bills paid.
The hearing continues today.