Help with cat in leasehold flat - Director with passive/aggressive behaviour

AdrianC

Splatfoot said:

What  can they do if you don't comply?

They can apply for a legal injunction to enforce the lease - for which the infringing leaseholder would have to pay the costs (if successful), and all leaseholders would have to pay a share (if unsuccessful).

Ultimately, as has been said, the lease can be forfeit. But legal costs long before that stage would be utterly horrendous, to the point that only a total monomaniac would still have the damn cat. Or, likely, the flat - having been forced into bankruptcy by the costs...

[Deleted User]

Why did you not read the lease? At the end of the day regardless of the circumstances, the lease says you have to ask permission and the people giving the permission have said no. Sadly the cat will have to go unless you can ask them again and explain things. But they seem the curtain twitches type.

Lockdown will be over soon hopefully and your partners health will likely improve after this?

Skiddaw1

Have to say that if it were me I'd put the flat on the market and move rather than rehome my cat. Really feel for you OP and hope it works out.

SaintJudy

I think you need to do two things here first - firstly read the actual wording of your lease, does it say you have to ask for permission which cannot reasonably be withheld? Secondly find out if anyone else has pets. If so, then this proves that permission has been granted in the past and the director's objection to your pet is purely based on the fact that you didn't follow procedure, rather than them following a policy of blanket refusals to pets in the building. If other people do have pets in the building, if say you did remove the cat from the flat and at some point in the future ask permission for a pet, would they reasonably be able to say no as you had followed the correct procedure? What's to stop you letting your cat stay with friends for a couple of months, you saying you have got rid of the cat and then bringing it back? 

rik111

Don't panic, just say ok. Keep the cat and deny having one. 
What exactly are they going to do about it ?

It seems pathetic if other owners have dogs.
Nothing will happen and if any nosey !!!!!! mentions a cat, tell them to stop harassing you or you will involve the Police .

Slithery

rik111 said:

It seems pathetic if other owners have dogs.

Where did you pull that piece of information from?

NameUnavailable

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/jenrick-overhauls-tenancy-agreement-to-help-end-pet-bans

Write to Jenrick and your local MP - see if they can write to your management company/freeholders to appeal on your behalf.

macman

Forgetting about the cat for the moment; who the hell buys a flat without reading every single word of the lease, 'loosely' or otherwise?
What else could be lurking in there that you 'weren't expecting to find'? 

wannabe_a_saver

Skiddaw1 said:

Have to say that if it were me I'd put the flat on the market and move rather than rehome my cat. Really feel for you OP and hope it works out.

I agree with this, I wouldn't choose a flat over an animal I'd committed to care for.  

That said, lung conditions are usually made worse by cats, not better, so I wouldn't push that angle too much. 

Make your appeal, give your evidence that the cat is not a nuisance to anybody and that withholding permission is unreasonable.  Hopefully you will win but if you lose just put the flat on the market and move to somewhere you can take your cat without breaching the lease.  They aren't going to waste money ending the lease when you are leaving anyway. 

davidmcn

I would have thought the likelihood of anybody bothering to go legal about an indoors cat to be pretty remote.