Problem With Management Company - Help Needed

englishdesi

Hi All,

I would be grateful if any of you kind souls could help me guide my friend on what to do in her situation.

My friend owns a flat in the same block as me, which she rents out, the tenants to be fair are very nice people and nobody in the block has had any problems with them.

However, the lady in the flat below the tenants is making the tenants and the landlords life hell.

It all started back in January when these new tenants moved in, the lady in the flat below complained to the management company that the new tenants were being noisy and playing music until all hours through a big soundsystem, however upon investigation, the tenants did not own a sound system, they have a laptop with speakers, anyway, she seems to be making the tenants life hell, saying they make too much noise coming and going in the block.

When the management company investigated, they found the landlord had done everything expected of her, however one evening the lady in the flat below noticed that the tenants in the rental flat, have got laminate flooring so she complained to the management company that these was against the covenants:

To keep the floors of the Flat covered with carpet and under felt or with other effective sound-deadening floor covering material.’’ My friend having consulted a solicitor, was of the view that having a carpet, under the laminate flooring, more than complies with the covenant, furthermore, she has gone over and above, what the covenants have asked, by adding rugs on top of the floor, thus providing an additional layer of ‘sound-deadening floor covering material’. This has been the case for over 5 years.

It was somewhat surprising that it took the lady in the flat below 5 years to raise a grievance against the type of flooring my friend has in my flat,

What is worse is that the lady in the flat below is director of the management company and my friend feels the management company is taking the side of this individual.

To make matters worse, my friend got a phone call from the management company today ignoring her solicitors advice and telling my friend that it's not up to her when she decides it is over, the management company will decide and she has 30 days to strip out the floorboards or they will take her to court.

What can she do, she is very delicate and fragile and doesnt need this stress,any help you can provide would be appreciated.

Regards
English Desi

Cannon_Fodder

"nobody in the block has had any problems with them." - that's not true. The lady beneath them has had problems. Its unlikely anyone else would, that's the very person who would. If she was 3 storeys higher and to one side, then it might be her being awkward.

If your friend is fragile and does not want stress, comply with the request. Take out the laminate. Its not difficult. She has carpet underneath, ready to walk on.

I would not totally discount the possibility of laminate being noisy, even if on carpet, as if it is fitted flush to the skirting, there will be some vibration passed sideways and down the walls.

The missing sound system is a red-herring. Good quality, even if small, laptop speakers can bang out some serious noise. Might well sound like a full-blown sound system. If the tenants have given her cause to become more aware of noise, compared to previous tenants, then it is reasonable for her to seek to ensure that all elements that contribute to noise are 100% right.

Getting some new tenants might be a good idea, as they sound like trouble.

The comment about "its taken 5 years to complain" - the lady was there for 5 years and didn't have an issue, now some new tenants turn up and there is an issue - what's the factor that has changed? The new tenants.

So, there is likely to be some validity to the complaints - worse than your friend sees on her pre-annouced visits - as the tenants have a right to peaceful enjoyment.

I'd say its the tenants making the lady's life hell, not the other way round.

Fire_Fox

The lady downstairs needs to contact Environmental Health and they will listen to the noise themselves and, if needs be, take readings to see if there is indeed excessive noise. The covenant in the lease cannot be enforced by court it can be enforced by a Leasehold Valuation Tribunal, but either way there will need to be evidence that the flooring is causing a noise issue and not poor sound proofing. Your friend should NOT be dealing with this neighbour dispute by telephone, she should be communicating in writing only to form a paper trail of her efforts to resolve the dispute amicably.