I'll try and keep this short.
Background: My maintenance company were getting sacked. Sent out letters claiming backdated service charge (approx £1200). I wrote back stating that these charges were outside the 18 month statutory time limit and quoted the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 (LATA), Section 20B.
They wrote back stating that the statutory time limit didn’t count where insurance payments were concerned as they were specifically stated in the lease as a rent and to send them c£600.
I quoted again the LATA, Section 18 which states “in the following provisions of this Act “service charge” means an amount payable by a tenant as part of or in addition to the rent which is payable….for services, repairs, maintenance or insurance” and therefore falls within the statutory time limit. I got this information from the Leasehold Advisory Service who have told me, on two separate occasions, that I am in the right and do not have to pay this money.
They have now said that their “client believes the advice I have been given is flawed” and send them £400 and they’ll say no more about it.
I have no idea where to go from here – I could pay them the £400 and get them off my back forever, but it’s the principle of the thing. This has been going on since February 2007. I will get a solicitor or suggest they take me to a LVT if necessary. Can anyone help/advise? Thanks in advance.
