Freeholder or leaseholder responsibility?

ewicc

I have noticed lots of cracks appearing in my flat in the wall and ceilings, I have been monitoring these for about a year or so and they seem to be increasing in number. I have the leasehold of the flat, there are two flats in the house. I live in the upstairs flat and there are cracks in both flats.
Is the freeholder responsible for repairs/rectifying if it is some structural issues that are causing the cracks?
Should I along with the owners of the downstairs flat, get a structural report done to find out what is causing the cracks first/initially or is it the responsibility of the freeholder to get this done?
Thanks in advance

Albermarle

How big are the cracks ? Probably best if you post a photo.

Can you see them from outside as well? 

Have you lived there many years with no cracks, and then they suddenly started to appear ? 

Mark_d

Do you have a management company to whom you pay a service charge for maintenance of communal areas, upkeep of the building, buildings insurance etc?

Cracks appearing in older buildings isn't unusual but maybe there is a case for concern.  You should raise this through the organisation responsible for your buildings insurance.  They should then get the relevant surveys done and be responsible for any remedial work

ewicc

It is a house that is split into two flats/maisonettes - an upstairs and downstairs. I pay a service charge which is the cost of buildings insurance plus a small admin fee - about £120-150~ per year in total.
The freeholder is a housing trust and I annually pay this service charge, there is no communal areas or anything else that they take care of/upkeep.
There are lots of cracks some very long, from one side of the room to the other along the ceilings. The cracks are not very wide most are hairline in width, some are bigger - the widest is about 2mm in thickness.
I have lived in the house since 2006~ it is only in the last 2 or so years that they cracks have appeared that I have noticed. Been monitoring them for the last year and they seem to be increasing in number. The house was built around 1890-1930, mine I think was around 1900-1910. 
I will take some pics when I get home this evening and post.

eddddy

ewicc said:

Is the freeholder responsible for repairs/rectifying if it is some structural issues that are causing the cracks?

I'm not sure if you've slightly misunderstood or not.

Typically, with most leases (but not all)...

• The freeholder will be responsible for repairing things like the external walls, the roof, etc

• The leaseholder will be responsible for repairing things like internal walls and plaster 

So, for example, if something has caused both external and internal walls to crack - the freeholder should repair the external walls, and the leaseholder should repair the internal walls.

But before repairing anything, you should try to find out the cause - to see if there is something that needs repairing first.

ewicc

Yes that I understand, I don't want to pay to re-plaster all the internal walls and ceilings in the flat and then for the cracking to return.
Hence I am asking whether I should/need to get a structural report done along with the owners (leaseholders of downstairs) or  is it the freeholder that does this?

propertyrental

We can't read your lease. 

What does it say about freeholder Vs leaseholder responsibilities?

eddddy

ewicc said:

Yes that I understand, I don't want to pay to re-plaster all the internal walls and ceilings in the flat and then for the cracking to return.
Hence I am asking whether I should/need to get a structural report done along with the owners (leaseholders of downstairs) or  is it the freeholder that does this?

It's difficult to answer, based on the information you've provided.

If the cracking is being caused by a problem with, say, the roof, the external walls or the foundations - then the freeholder should be dealing with it (including getting a report, if the freeholder thinks that's necessary).

If the cracking is being caused, say, by expansion / contraction of parts of the building due to changes in temperature / humidity - that's nothing to do with the freeholder.

And if it's just normal expansion / contraction - you probably don't need a structural report or re-plastering. You just need the cracks filled with polyfila before repainting.


As a starting point, maybe tell the freeholder about the cracking, and see what they say.

ewicc

I am guessing in order to determine what is causing the cracking, I would need a structural engineer or alike to come view and assess?

See some pics of the cracks. Thanks for your help and advice all

NameUnavailable

Given that the cracks have only recently started appearing and you say are getting worse, I would be worried about some structural issue.

As a leaseholder, the building isn't yours, it's the freeholders. So, I would be getting in touch with them asap (along with your neighbour ideally) to report the issue and ask them to investigate.

Whilst they are 'responsible' any costs to rectify the issue will be charged to you and the neighbour (unless it's something covered by the buildings insurance).

Albermarle

ewicc said:

I am guessing in order to determine what is causing the cracking, I would need a structural engineer or alike to come view and assess?

See some pics of the cracks. Thanks for your help and advice all

These kind of cracks would normally not be anything to worry about, just hairline cracks in the plaster. Some polyfilla and decorating should be sufficient.

However there are quite a lot and have appeared in a relatively short space of time, so not sure what is happening.