LON/00AM/LSC/2024/0313 — service charge decision
In LON/00AM/LSC/2024/0313, decided 4 June 2025, the First-tier Tribunal considered 7 disputed service charge items at Flats 1–9 Bastion House, Amhurst Road, London N16 7RG and reached a mixed result: 6 items were reduced or disallowed. Full decision on GOV.UK below.
Property: Flats 1–9 Bastion House, Amhurst Road, London N16 7RG
Decision date: 4 June 2025
Full decision: Read on GOV.UK
Managing agent named in the decision: Remus Property Services.
What was challenged and what the tribunal decided
| Item | Demanded | Allowed | Outcome | Grounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lifts (2023/24) | £5,300 | £698.76 | Reduced | Costs unreasonably incurred (s19(1)(a)) |
| Buildings insurance (2023/24) | £6,126.40 | £3,815.35 | Reduced | Insurance not market tested, Costs unreasonably incurred (s19(1)(a)) |
| Repairs & maintenance (2023/24) | — | — | Allowed in full | — |
| Gardening & grounds (2022/23) | £2,958.88 | £1,850 | Reduced | Costs unreasonably incurred (s19(1)(a)), Not payable under the lease |
| Gardening & grounds (2023/24) | £2,193.60 | £1,850 | Reduced | Costs unreasonably incurred (s19(1)(a)) |
| Cleaning (2022/23) | £2,977 | £2,459.94 | Reduced | Costs unreasonably incurred (s19(1)(a)) |
| Management fees (2023/24) | £3,614 | £3,322 | Reduced | Fee excessive for service delivered |
Section 20C order: partial.
Key passages (verbatim)
“A charge of an estimated sum of £5,300 was made in the interim service charge for 2023/24. The actual charge was £698.76.”
“The reasonable sum for building insurance for the relevant period is £3,815.35, not £6,126.40.”
“The charge of £360 including VAT four times a year for fire system maintenance is reasonable.”
“the cost of £712.80 for the removal of dead plants before the leaseholders were in place is not payable under the leases. The reasonable figure for gardening costs in both years is £1,850.”
“The reasonable figure for gardening costs in both years is £1,850.”
“The reasonable sum for cleaning in 2022/23 was £2,459.94.”
“unlike Mr Goode's oral response to us, the text in the landlord's column was unhelpful and uninformative.”
“Mr Goode candidly volunteered that the issue had not been interrogated by Remus.”
“there had not been an experienced property manager successfully in place for about a year. Mr Belsham accepted that the result had been that the leaseholder-facing work of the managing agents had not been adequately performed for that period.”
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.