Gateway Property Management Ltd — tribunal record

“it is a clear breach of the Lease for the Respondent not to have provided any accounts for the 2021 Service Charge Year, whatever its end date, be that 31 December 2021 (as the Tribunal determined it was), 28 February or 31 March 2022.”

“Gateway's rather surprising submission on these issues, in light of its allegedly significant engagement with the Respondent since 2019, including the preparation of its accounts, was that it was not managing agent at the time so has no further information about any income or expenditure prior to 1 March 2022.”

“The Respondent has provided no clarity or transparency on these issues.”

“Agreeing a fixed fee of £588 for administration costs when the work required is minimal is not reasonable. The directors of the Respondent at the time were both solicitors and they had incorporated the company. They would or should have been aware of the minimal work required and able to perform the task without instructing a consultant.”

“the Tribunal was rather unimpressed at this sum having been claimed in addition to what is a sufficiently generous general administration fee”

“The Tribunal was very troubled by the fact that the later management fees were shown in the Respondent's statement of case, simply as a single total and the Applicants contribution to those shown as a single percentage of 4.02%.”

“as the demand made by the applicant contained sums incorrectly demanded. The tribunal finds this sum of £300 is unreasonable and not payable by the respondent.”

“the Applicant had previously queried the basis for the service charges, including by a solicitor's letter to which the Respondent could not point to any response having been provided, and that there appeared to be no basis for those charges to have been raised to the Applicant.”