MAN/00BY/LSC/2023/0044 — service charge decision
In MAN/00BY/LSC/2023/0044, decided 10 December 2024, the First-tier Tribunal considered 11 disputed service charge items at Flat 3, 4 Princes Avenue, Liverpool L8 2TA and reached a mixed result: 6 items were reduced or disallowed. Full decision on GOV.UK below.
Property: Flat 3, 4 Princes Avenue, Liverpool L8 2TA
Decision date: 10 December 2024
Full decision: Read on GOV.UK
What was challenged and what the tribunal decided
| Item | Demanded | Allowed | Outcome | Grounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other charges (2020) | — | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Demand formally invalid, Section 20B 18-month time limit |
| Other charges (2021) | — | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Demand formally invalid, Section 20B 18-month time limit |
| Other charges (2022) | — | — | Allowed in full | — |
| Repairs & maintenance (2022) | £264 | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Works not necessary, Costs unreasonably incurred (s19(1)(a)) |
| Repairs & maintenance (2022) | £457 | £457 | Allowed in full | — |
| Buildings insurance (2022) | — | — | Allowed in full | — |
| Other charges (2022) | £900 | £900 | Allowed in full | — |
| Repairs & maintenance (2022) | £120 | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Not payable under the lease, Other grounds |
| Buildings insurance (2023) | £2,606 | £2,606 | Allowed in full | — |
| Legal & professional costs (2023) | £2,949.60 | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Demand formally invalid |
| Other charges (2023) | — | £0 | Disallowed entirely | Demand formally invalid |
Key passages (verbatim)
“No service charge demand was served in respect of 2020 or 2021. The failure to serve a demand cannot be remedied now more than two and a half years after the end of the 2021 service charge year.”
“No service charge demand was served in respect of 2020 or 2021. The failure to serve a demand cannot be remedied now more than two and a half years after the end of the 2021 service charge year.”
“No adjustment is necessary in respect of the amount that the Applicant is liable to pay in 2022.”
“It would therefore be unreasonable to incur costs by replacing them. The cost of £264.00 stands to be deducted from the service charge demand for 2022.”
“On the available evidence the Tribunal concludes that the work was necessary, and the costs were reasonable.”
“On the available evidence, the Tribunal finds that the premium charged is reasonable and recoverable.”
“This argument has no merit because what is being considered is the replacement in 2022. The Respondent states that the Applicant is not entitled to see the fire safety assessment because she is no longer a director. This also has no merit.”
“The argument that the Applicant cannot now object is spurious. The liability to pay and the reasonableness of the service charge is not curtailed by the process said to have been adopted by the leaseholders.”
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.