LON/00AM/LSC/2020/0186 — service charge decision
In LON/00AM/LSC/2020/0186, decided 7 January 2021, the First-tier Tribunal considered 7 disputed service charge items at Flats 3 and 4, 88 Chatsworth Road, London and reached a mixed result: 2 items were reduced or disallowed. Full decision on GOV.UK below.
Property: Flats 3 and 4, 88 Chatsworth Road, London
Decision date: 7 January 2021
Full decision: Read on GOV.UK
Managing agent named in the decision: Warwick Estates.
What was challenged and what the tribunal decided
| Item | Demanded | Allowed | Outcome | Grounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Management fees (2017) | — | £125 | Allowed in full | — |
| Legal & professional costs (2017) | — | £78.75 | Allowed in full | — |
| Utilities (2017) | — | £35.75 | Allowed in full | — |
| Other charges (2017) | — | £3.50 | Allowed in full | — |
| Reserve fund contributions (2017) | — | £125 | Allowed in full | — |
| Major works (2017) | £672 | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Costs unreasonably incurred (s19(1)(a)), Poor standard of work |
| Other charges (2017) | — | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Landlord could not evidence the cost |
Section 20C order: granted.
Key passages (verbatim)
“Certain sums were allowed for Management in the sum of £125 plus VAT per flat”
“for Accountancy fees and certification - £60 and £18.75 per flat, plus VAT where charged”
“for electricity at £35.75 per flat”
“sundries of £3.50 per flat”
“a reserve fund contributions of £125 per flat”
“The sum being claimed from each leaseholder was £672. For the reasons set out in the Decision the amount was held to be unreasonable and not recoverable.”
“To now seek to recover, as appears to be the case, charges for services that were not provided, is, in my, finding to say the least unreasonable.”
“it would seem that the Respondent was within a hairsbreadth of being disbarred having been given notice by the tribunal on 24th November 2020 requiring that it complied with the directions at paragraph 3 by 2nd December 2020 or faced being disbarred.”
“it does seem to be a somewhat doctrinaire approach to the management of the premises.”
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.