LON/00BH/LSC/2023/0140 — service charge decision
In LON/00BH/LSC/2023/0140, decided 11 October 2023, the First-tier Tribunal considered 9 disputed service charge items at Flat 6 Oaks Court, 226-228 Cann Hall Road, London E11 3NF and reached a mixed result: 9 items were reduced or disallowed. Full decision on GOV.UK below.
Property: Flat 6 Oaks Court, 226-228 Cann Hall Road, London E11 3NF
Decision date: 11 October 2023
Full decision: Read on GOV.UK
Managing agent named in the decision: Vectra Freehold Management Ltd.
What was challenged and what the tribunal decided
| Item | Demanded | Allowed | Outcome | Grounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other charges (2014/2015) | — | — | Disallowed entirely | Demand formally invalid, Section 20B 18-month time limit |
| Other charges (2015/2016) | — | — | Disallowed entirely | Demand formally invalid, Section 20B 18-month time limit |
| Other charges (2016/2017) | — | — | Reduced | Demand formally invalid |
| Other charges (2017/2018) | — | — | Reduced | Demand formally invalid |
| Other charges (2018/2019) | — | — | Reduced | Demand formally invalid |
| Other charges (2019/2020) | — | — | Reduced | Demand formally invalid |
| Other charges (2020/2021) | — | — | Reduced | Demand formally invalid |
| Other charges (2021/2022) | £1,344.80 | — | Reduced | Demand formally invalid |
| Other charges (2022/2023) | £1,668.23 | — | Reduced | Demand formally invalid |
Key passages (verbatim)
“There is no evidence before the Tribunal as to when any details of the expenditure in the years 2014/15 and 2015/16 were sent to the Applicant... the Tribunal is therefore unable to consider whether s20B might have been relevant... and it therefore finds that the service charges demanded for the service charge years 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 are not recoverable.”
“There is no evidence before the Tribunal as to when any details of the expenditure in the years 2014/15 and 2015/16 were sent to the Applicant... the service charges demanded for the service charge years 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 are not recoverable.”
“None of the accounts before the tribunal in respect of the years from 2016/17 to 2020/2021 were accompanied by a contemporaneous certificate from Tish Leibovitch Ltd... the service charges demanded for the service charge years 2016/2017 to 2020/2021 are recoverable but not currently payable.”
“None of the accounts before the tribunal in respect of the years from 2016/17 to 2020/2021 were accompanied by a contemporaneous certificate from Tish Leibovitch Ltd... the service charges demanded for the service charge years 2016/2017 to 2020/2021 are recoverable but not currently payable.”
“None of the accounts before the tribunal in respect of the years from 2016/17 to 2020/2021 were accompanied by a contemporaneous certificate from Tish Leibovitch Ltd... the service charges demanded for the service charge years 2016/2017 to 2020/2021 are recoverable but not currently payable.”
“None of the accounts before the tribunal in respect of the years from 2016/17 to 2020/2021 were accompanied by a contemporaneous certificate from Tish Leibovitch Ltd... the service charges demanded for the service charge years 2016/2017 to 2020/2021 are recoverable but not currently payable.”
“The Applicant provided no evidence to substantiate his allegation that the services provided by the landlord were not undertaken to a reasonable standard. His complaint was to work which he considered the landlord should have carried out, not the standard to which any work undertaken was done, or its cost.”
“Further that letter did not comply with the requirements of the 1988 Lease. It did not state that in each year the service charge statement was a fair summary of the expenditure on services nor that the accounts are set out in a way which shows how the expenditure is or will be reflected in the Service Charge, or that the expenditure has been sufficiently supported by accounts receipts and other documents produced to the accountant.”
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.