A financial institution has been described in the Dáil as worse than the Black and Tans after its agents seized farm and plant machinery from a contractor in the middle of the night and broke into a neighour’s property to gain access to the equipment.

Independent TD Mattie McGrath claimed the “thugs” acting for Bank of Ireland Finance took the machinery from the Co Tipperary contractor, who was in business for 40 years, without a court order and were accompanied by gardaí.

The Independent TD said the machines they took were between four and six years old and “they were almost finished their payments”.

He held up a list of payments that had been made up to September this year, including “one for €5,000 paid on September 20th, which still had not been cashed by the bank by November”.

Describing the five men who repossessed the machinery as “nothing short of cowboys”, he said they “stole” other equipment not contracted to Bank of Ireland Finance including a Massey Ferguson 6490, and “drove it back an hour later when they discovered it wasn’t the right tractor”.

They also took a hedge cutter worth €20,000 which was with a different finance company, Woodchester Finance. “Now Woodchester have informed them that Bank of Ireland kindly passed this over to them and they’re keeping it as well.”

Mr McGrath said the gardaí were in a paddy wagon and sat for 40 minutes while the “thugs” loaded up the equipment. The gardaí accompanied them around Tipperary for hours and the “five thugs” were in a repossessed jeep with no tax or insurance disc.

“The public are paying for these banks and the State protects them and allows them to carry it out," he said.

Describing the contractors as “of good standing” he said it was one thing “to come during the day” but they came “in the dead of night” and it was “State terrorism”.

Minister of State Fergus O’Dowd, speaking for the Minister for Finance, said Mr McGrath was making “very serious charges” and he advised him to write to the Garda Commissioner and the district Superintendent.

He also said the implications of what he was saying about the gardaí were “very serious”. It was Mr O'Dowd's experience that if a Garda vehicle was involved they had always acted "always and only in conformity with the law".

Mr McGrath said he was not blaming any individual officers but they were brought out by this institution. There was no court order.

Mr O’Dowd highlighted existing hire purchase and consumer credit legislation as well as codes of practice financial institutions were obliged to follow.

Mr McGrath said “the Acts don’t matter to these people. They came in the dead of night, broke in through a neighbour’s property.” Another neighbour driving to work in Dublin noticed the action and alerted the contractor.

He said the machines were taken to Ganley Craig auctions.

“I tell the people to stay away from those auctions. They are buying people’s misery.

“The Black and Tans didn’t do it. The landlord didn’t do it with the sheriff coming in for evictions.”