BIR/00CQ/LSC/2023/0016 — service charge decision
In BIR/00CQ/LSC/2023/0016, decided 28 May 2024, the First-tier Tribunal considered 3 disputed service charge items at Meridian Point Friars Road Coventry and reached a mixed result: 1 item was reduced or disallowed. Full decision on GOV.UK below.
Property: Meridian Point Friars Road Coventry
Decision date: 28 May 2024
Full decision: Read on GOV.UK
Managing agent named in the decision: HLM.
What was challenged and what the tribunal decided
| Item | Demanded | Allowed | Outcome | Grounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other charges (2023) | £27,000 | £27,000 | Allowed in full | — |
| Other charges (2024) | £60,542.40 | £30,000 | Reduced | Costs unreasonably incurred (s19(1)(a)) |
| Other charges (2024) | £20,000 | £20,000 | Allowed in full | — |
Section 20C order: partial.
Key passages (verbatim)
“For 2023, we make no change to the budgeted sum, as accounts will presumably be produced fairly soon.”
“Our view is that a reasonable budget sum for 2024 would be £30,000.00 rather than c£60,000.00... We therefore determine that the budget for 2024 should be reduced overall by the sum of £30,542.40.”
“Apart from the fire door inspections, none of the budgeted items appear to us to be excessive or unreasonable in the light of our experience and expertise in property management.”
“We cannot however find any explanation from the Respondent that justifies the extent of the budget for 2024. The quotes for professional advices referred to in paragraph 46 above cannot support a budget over two years of around £87,000 for these costs when the highest quote was in the region of £37,000.”
“it is the cost of quarterly communal fire door inspections that raised our eyebrows the highest. However, neither party has given us any evidence of the nature or quantity of the fire doors.”
This summary is assembled from the structured record of the published decision; amounts appear only where the tribunal stated them. Always rely on the full decision itself.