Has Ireland's Eircode messaging gone too far?

For more than ten years the public has been told to "have your Eircode ready."
Emergency services.
Ambulances.
Doctors.
Deliveries.
Tradespeople.
Taxi drivers.
The message has been remarkably consistent:
Use your Eircode. It will help people find you.
For most locations it does.
But for some, it doesn't.
The problem is that years of promotional messaging have created an assumption that an Eircode always produces the correct road route.
It does not.
Where an Eircode is linked to a location that causes misrouting, every organisation that has been encouraged to rely upon it can unknowingly inherit the same problem.
That over reliance has consequences.
Emergency responders may continue following electronic directions even when local geography suggests something is wrong.
Service providers may insist that customers supply an Eircode before assistance can be dispatched, even where other location information would be more useful.

If delays occur, householders can find themselves blamed for "giving the wrong Eircode" when the code itself may have routed the vehicle to the wrong road, entrance or access point. This has resulted in goods being delivered to the wrong customer.
Ironically, before Eircode was introduced, the National Ambulance Service was cautious about relying on satellite navigation because of concerns over Irish address routing.
The expectation was that Eircode would solve those problems.
Recent evidence, see our article here =/>, suggests that, in some cases, it has simply changed their nature.
The solution is not to stop using Eircodes.
The solution is to stop treating them as infallible.
Responders should always remain alert to visual and physical evidence that the route guidance may be wrong.
Service providers should never disadvantage customers simply because they cannot provide an Eircode.
Most importantly, the Government's public messaging needs to evolve.
The Minister responsible for Ireland's National Postcode System also has responsibility for ensuring that the public understand both its strengths and its limitations.
Simple advice such as "If the route doesn't look right, don't rely on the Eircode alone" could prevent delays, reduce frustration and, in some situations, save lives.