LON/00BF/LSC/2023/0406 — service charge decision
In LON/00BF/LSC/2023/0406, decided 2 July 2024, the First-tier Tribunal considered 13 disputed service charge items at Albion Court, Albion Road, Sutton, Surrey and found largely for the leaseholder: 8 items were reduced or disallowed. Full decision on GOV.UK below.
Property: Albion Court, Albion Road, Sutton, Surrey
Decision date: 2 July 2024
Full decision: Read on GOV.UK
Managing agent named in the decision: Residential Management Group (RMG).
What was challenged and what the tribunal decided
| Item | Demanded | Allowed | Outcome | Grounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other charges (2023) | £1,755.98 | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Demand formally invalid |
| Reserve fund contributions (2024) | £2,722.33 | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Not payable under the lease, Costs unreasonably incurred (s19(1)(a)) |
| Cleaning (2024) | £1,283 | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Works not necessary |
| Other charges (2024) | £55 | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Works not necessary |
| Gardening & grounds (2024) | £3,242 | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Works not necessary |
| Repairs & maintenance (2024) | £648 | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Works not necessary |
| Legal & professional costs (2024) | £576 | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Landlord could not evidence the cost |
| Management fees (2024) | £4,049 | £4,049 | Allowed in full | — |
| Utilities (2024) | £1,479 | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Landlord could not evidence the cost, Costs unreasonably incurred (s19(1)(a)) |
| Other charges (2024) | — | £408 | Allowed in full | — |
| Repairs & maintenance (2024) | — | £1,250 | Allowed in full | — |
| Other charges (2024) | — | £342 | Allowed in full | — |
| Other charges (2024) | — | £130 | Allowed in full | — |
Section 20C order: granted.
Key passages (verbatim)
“The Respondent's pleading at paragraph 8 however acknowledged that the invoice dated 28th September 2023 was 'too late' and that a reversal would be applied.”
“The £73,500 Balance of Maintenance Fund … has already been decided to be not payable. It cannot be re-introduced later as the Respondent has provided for in the March 2024 demand.”
“Services withdrawn and still withdrawn cannot be claimed.”
“The total of the estimated charges for cleaning (£1283), window cleaning (£55), grounds maintenance (£3242) and gutter clearance (£648) amount to £5228 for the twenty seven leaseholders … not recoverable because are not being provided”
“Services withdrawn and still withdrawn cannot be claimed.”
“The total of the estimated charges for cleaning (£1283), window cleaning (£55), grounds maintenance (£3242) and gutter clearance (£648) amount to £5228 … not recoverable because are not being provided”
“one of the reasons for the continuing litigation is because the Respondent or its representatives had not understood the meaning and effect of the Tribunal's previous orders.”
“The Respondent's pleaded response – to what is a careful and highly particularised allegation is quite extraordinary, or unusually frank.”
“Mr Amodeo's evidence was less than convincing on this point, as it would have been relatively easy to produce evidence of instructions, and yet in all the hundreds of pages of documents, nothing suggests that audit and accounting fees are going to be incurred in the six-month period estimates.”
“No coherent explanation was provided by the Respondent as to why no complete or even draft accounts had been prepared for subsequent years.”
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.