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Flat Management Company Not Providing Habitable Living Conditions For Mother
DiligentParsnip
Posts: 14 Forumite
Situation: Mother bought flat in a block about 8 years ago (standard, non retirement building). Some damp was mentioned on survey at the time i think.
Last 5 years the management company in charge have tried various methods with various tradesmen to solve damp/mould issues but its never fully been solved. Not to mention she has had other damp from pipes in last couple years and the trademens hired by the management company never seem to fully fix things.
The management company is paid about £200 per flat in the building monthly for service charge.
Anyway... what can we legally do about this situation? can we legally force the mother to be re housed at the cost of the management company until problems are resolved and flat is habitable (verified by 3rd party). ?
Or if not, can we legally withhold the £200 monthly charge until problems fixed. Or legally claim even more per month as compensation until problem fixed.
Many thanks
Last 5 years the management company in charge have tried various methods with various tradesmen to solve damp/mould issues but its never fully been solved. Not to mention she has had other damp from pipes in last couple years and the trademens hired by the management company never seem to fully fix things.
The management company is paid about £200 per flat in the building monthly for service charge.
Anyway... what can we legally do about this situation? can we legally force the mother to be re housed at the cost of the management company until problems are resolved and flat is habitable (verified by 3rd party). ?
Or if not, can we legally withhold the £200 monthly charge until problems fixed. Or legally claim even more per month as compensation until problem fixed.
Many thanks
0
Comments
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Do NOT withold the charge- you will simply be charged late payment fees, admin fees, legal fees- and that will mount up fast.
The £200 is to cover standard running costs. Your annual statement will show where it was spent so check that out.
Whether it is enough to also cover the damp investigation/treatment, who knows? Only the accounts can answer that question. If it does not, there will be aditional charges to pay for those repairs.
Is it really 'uninhabitable'? Says who? If you've had Environmental Health round and they have deemed the flat 'uninhabitable' then they can/will serve an enforcement notice on the freeholder.
As for the damp itself - tell us more:
* which floor? and how many floors?
* where? which room? top of wall or bottom?
* what ventilation exists?
* what drying/cooking arrangements are in use?
* what are the symptoms? Smell? peeling wallpaper/paint? mould? what?
* etc0 -
Do NOT wihold the chage- you will simply be charged late payment fees, admin fes, legal fes- and that will mount up fast.
The £200 is tocover standard running costs. Your annual statement will show where it was spent so check that out.
Whethr it is enough to alo cover the damp investigation/treatment, who knows? Only the accounts can answer that question. If it does not, there will be adiional charges to pay for those repairs.
Is it really 'uninhabitable'? Says who? If you've had Environmental Health round and they have deemed the flat 'uninhabitable' then they can/will serve am enforcement notice on the freeholder.
As for the damp itself - tellus more:
* which floor? and how many floors?
* where? which room? top of wall or bottom?
* what ventilation exists?
* what drying/cooking arrangements are in use?
* what are the symptoms? Smell? peeling wallpaper/paint? mould? what?
* etc
To add to that,
-Wall construction type? Solid/Cavity etc
-Air bricks? Are they covered over?
-Double glazing?
_does she get condensation on widows in winter?
-Extractor fans in bathroom?
-Drying clothes indoors?Those who risk nothing, Do nothing, achieve nothing, become nothingMFW #63 £0/£5000 -
Do NOT wihold the chage- you will simply be charged late payment fees, admin fes, legal fes- and that will mount up fast.
The £200 is tocover standard running costs. Your annual statement will show where it was spent so check that out.
ok thanks, we wont do that
Whethr it is enough to alo cover the damp investigation/treatment, who knows? Only the accounts can answer that question. If it does not, there will be adiional charges to pay for those repairs.
Dont know, they increased the monthly charge to around £200 up from about £130 about 1 year ago - approx guess. But it was quite a jump in cost due to some damp prevention attempts.
Is it really 'uninhabitable'? Says who? If you've had Environmental Health round and they have deemed the flat 'uninhabitable' then they can/will serve am enforcement notice on the freeholder.
No Environmental health has been around, i guess we could consider that route as a possiblity. What would a served notice on the freeholder mean? a new management company? (that may not help damp issue)
Do you think getting the mother rehoused at current management companies cost until problem sorted is not actually a realistic possiblity that would ever happen unless management company agreed it was a good idea?
* which floor? and how many floors?
* where? which room? top of wall or bottom?
* what ventilation exists?
* what drying/cooking arrangements are in use?
* what are the symptoms? Smell? peeling wallpaper/paint? mould? what?
* etc
Shes located near a habour. Probably doesn't help but tbh whats going on with the damp has never been worked out with success.
-Ground floor shes on but car park underneath. Building on slope so shes roadside outside her window if that makes sense. They did work on drains and on walls outside.
- All rooms. Outside walls only had damp until recently. Now in last year there is some leak somewhere in the building and inside adjoining walls have damp and black mould - so now 2 damp issues going on.
The last damp expert (3rd damp expert company send by management now) said roof was problem due to water testing he did on the damp - for years they were trying to tell us condensation haha. The management company have said no roof work until 2022 when new roof is going on (i think) - so what mother has to just sit and wait until 2022? is that legal ?
- There is a smell, sometimes its fine, sometimes can be not great depending on if mould has been wiped off walls or replastered walls or time of year.
The management company have had trademans tank the mother walls in couple rooms in last 2 years and put on anti mould plaster. Few months later there was a water mark and mould few months after, they did tanking again about 4 months ago. Any work takes forever and only happens when its chased up. we dont pick the tradesmen ever.
Its not a cooking, or drying clothes type problem situation. Im sure cooking doesn't help but its either a roof leak going down into the walls or just damp coming up from ground or something. the ground floor flat next door has some damp issues also.
Building = 1960s-70s build.0 -
To add to that,
-Wall construction type? Solid/Cavity etc
-Air bricks? Are they covered over?
-Double glazing?
_does she get condensation on widows in winter?
-Extractor fans in bathroom?
-Drying clothes indoors?
Cavity wall, they looked inside the wall and building rubble is in the cavity, so 1 theory is the roof is leaking and making the rubble wet and holding the water. hmmm
There are no air bricks.
She has double glazing, new in last few years.
Overall her ventilation is not great but wouldn't matter. You could have all windows cracked open at all times and the walls would be damp IMO. The damp is very much located at bottom half of wall - not all over wall.0 -
What concerns me also and could be more of a pressing matter is this 2nd damp issue coming from internal leak it seems, she just washed black mould out of a rug she has in the hallway for example cause the floor was damp. How long will they take to solve this internal leak issue i wonder now.0
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Sorry to bump but any further ideas legal wise on forcing the management company to rehouse the mother at their cost ? or is it just best to be nice and try to get most possible out of the management company ?0
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As a director with a Management Company (residents) we'd be very reluctant to house someone at our expense unless the place was completely uninhabitable and that is was, demonstrably, our "fault". It's quite possible, too, that the costs would fall back on other owners through the service charges.
We have someone in much the same position as your mother. It's been going on for years - we think solutions have been found - and they haven't etc etc. It's arguable that the resident has contributed to the matter through poor ventilation but he has never considered moving out.
As said above, if your mum's place is that bad then get Environmental Health in. They can order the freeholder to make the necessary repairs - but not to change ManCos.
ETA.
Personally, I'd be very wary of legal action unless I was certain. Costly and time consuming for both sides
You could try a telephone session with these guys. I have heard good things
https://clients.lease-advice.org/Appointment/Appointment?isFireSafety=False0 -
Thank you, great help, appreciated. Will do another mould check next time im down.
The ultimate plan is get the mother out but will try and do best mean time. The current state of the property maybe knocks 40k-50k off its actual value and its not an expensive flat or anything.0 -
To be honest if you are saying that you will check the mould next time you are down it doesn't really sound that you think your mum is in an uninhabitable flat0
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To be honest if you are saying that you will check the mould next time you are down it doesn't really sound that you think your mum is in an uninhabitable flat
What i think doesn't matter much legally or gov regulations wise, the place is very much uninhabitable from my stand point. I would not live in it and would consider it bad for someones health due to mould spores.
Works are ongoing over the months/years so for example they've scraped off some mould where tanking and replastering was done. Then this mould/water mark came back, then they retanked and replastered again. - That is the inside of the outsides walls (damp issue number 1). The damp experts say this issue is from the roof yet roof wont be fixed until 2022.
Damp issue number 2 started with an internal leak about 1 year ago (dripping water from ceiling) which doesn't seem to be fully/resolved by the hired tradesmen and has caused new mould/damp. Walls for this have been replastered and new flooring has been put in for damp issue number 2. Mould has come back now so i hear for damp issue number 2 and the ceiling is wet to touch. If thats the case i need to plan ahead hence this topic.0
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