Debate with Freeholder, Insulation Works & Ceiling

nilzpatel

I live on the 1st floor maisonette of a 1955 built flat.
It’s a detached property and only has ground floor flat and 1st floor flat
I am the leaseholder, and the ground floor flat is occupied by the freeholder.

Need advice/opinion of 2 issues:

1, currently there seems to be no sound insulation in between the floors, we can hear him talking TV likewise he can hear us. Initially the freeholder said it was my responsibility to get the sound insulations sorted. I checked the lease, and in the lease it mentioned I the leaseholder was to maintain the insulation works in between the joists. But having spoken with the solicitors they said currently as there is no insulation, there is nothing you can maintain. And that putting in something new goes beyond what the lease states.
Letter was sent to freeholder in Sept-10 explaining the above and he pretty much ignored the letter and never got back to me. Until 3 months ago I had guest over and of course it was loud as we all are chatting away, the freeholder decided to blast his TV and surround sound. Even when guest were gone well before 11pm and I was sleeping his TV volume had not changed.
That promoted me to call him in the middle of the nite and ask him to lower his TV.

Next morning I went to see him and said it is unacceptable that you play your TV so loud after 11pm, he said I thought your guest were still around, I said they had left by 10:45pm.
Anyways we got talking and I said you haven’t replied to my letter. He didn’t say anything. I said we need to get to the both of this and we cannot live like this.

Both agreed and we got on getting prices etc from various builders to meet building regs.
I have always offered him 50-50 split on the cost.
We are now at the point where we have met various builders and are happy with 1. The actual work will be done from my end as it works out best that way. The freeholder said he will pay around 35% of the cost and that I pay the rest.
I have said no, its 50-50 or nothing, as its affects the both of us.
My other offer to him was I pay the full cost of the insulation works and he agrees to extend my lease in exchange to 125 yrs. Current lease is 91 yrs.

So am I been reasonable to him by offering 50-50 to the works in between the joists?
Is it his responsibility to ensure building regs are met?

2. The 2nd issue which the freeholder has come up with in the last 2 weeks is that he said to me that his current ceiling does not meet fire regs. He told me last week its 9mm thick (I haven’t checked it myself)
And so how he wants me to pay 50-50 towards getting his ceiling to meet fire regs, basically double up the plasterboard.

His ceiling has nothing to do with me, and I have told him that it’s his ceiling so he needs to pay for that.
His come back saying if I am paying cost towards the insulation work, then I should pay cost towards his ceiling.
I said the insulation work is for both of our benefit. And the work is been carried out in the common area, in between joist.

I got a meeting with freeholder on Saturday again to finalize everything.
Hence would be good to know, what your thoughts are on the above.

Thanks