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Leasehold flat - failed fire safety risk assessment- what am I on the hook for?
MoreBrixton
Posts: 3 Newbie
I kind of knew something was up a few weeks ago when I got a deed of certificate request and now sure enough an email has come through saying the block has been downgraded to B2 (from A1) and they are putting in place a 24hour fire watch, installing 'a compliant fire alarm system'.
So what' mystifying me right now is
1) the building is 6 stories and the cladding is brick. (there may be some metal cladding on the penthouses I suppose). So wondering what the combustible material issue could be
2) how does the building NOT have a compliant fire alarm system?
3) why has this only come to light now? Surely this should have been picked up years ago - these post Grenfell regs aren't new
4) We moved in 2013 when the block was new. is it a co-incidence that this has suddenly been discovered shortly AFTER the NHBC warranty expired?
I've not managed to get hold of the assessments yet, but my suspicion is the issue might be the wooden floors on the external balconies some flats have (facing the inside of the internal courtyard). My flat doesn't have a balcony and is on the other side of the building facing the street. Should I still be liable for remediation?
So what' mystifying me right now is
1) the building is 6 stories and the cladding is brick. (there may be some metal cladding on the penthouses I suppose). So wondering what the combustible material issue could be
2) how does the building NOT have a compliant fire alarm system?
3) why has this only come to light now? Surely this should have been picked up years ago - these post Grenfell regs aren't new
4) We moved in 2013 when the block was new. is it a co-incidence that this has suddenly been discovered shortly AFTER the NHBC warranty expired?
I've not managed to get hold of the assessments yet, but my suspicion is the issue might be the wooden floors on the external balconies some flats have (facing the inside of the internal courtyard). My flat doesn't have a balcony and is on the other side of the building facing the street. Should I still be liable for remediation?
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Comments
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You will be liable for your share of the overall upkeep of the whole building?0
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I don't know if wooden balconies would be enough to require a fire watch.
I do wonder why the property was re-assessed, is it something to do with the failure of some assessors?I'm a Forum Ambassador on the housing, mortgages & student money saving boards. I volunteer to help get your forum questions answered and keep the forum running smoothly. Forum Ambassadors are not moderators and don't read every post. If you spot an illegal or inappropriate post then please report it to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com (it's not part of my role to deal with this). Any views are mine and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.com.0 -
I thought we had swerved the cladding scandal - our block is 5 stories and clad in solid brick. But it seems the approach to fire safety in the UK has just been woeful. The penthouse floor has some flammable cladding, the balconies (we don’t have one) have wooden decks, there’s no fireproof layer between the cavity and the internal walls and the cavity barriers sit against flammable insulation.
immediate action seems to be a 24hr waking watch until an upgraded fire alarm is fitted. And my reading is that this gets added to the service charge.
For actual remediation It looks like leaseholders costs are capped at £15k (but that excludes the cost of the waking watch).I’m trying to get a feel for how painful this is going to be. What sort of total costs am I looking at? Is this going to go on for years? I can’t see how they could address the in-wall issues - what’s likely to happen instead?0 -
I’ve started another thread with a more easily understood title
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6611540/leasehold-flat-failed-fire-safety-risk-assessment-what-am-i-on-the-hook-for#latest
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Can you sell the property, get away from the stress?0
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Who will take it on with the issues outlined and no timescale for remediation? Selling with liability for the share of ongoing costs of the 24hr waking watch is likely to mean the OP has to take a big haircut on the selling price...ReadySteadyPop said:Can you sell the property, get away from the stress?
I'd also imagine mortgage-ability would be affected.0 -
How long have you owned the property? As there a previous EWS certificate that failed to spot these issues? How come they have come to light just now?I'm a Forum Ambassador on the housing, mortgages & student money saving boards. I volunteer to help get your forum questions answered and keep the forum running smoothly. Forum Ambassadors are not moderators and don't read every post. If you spot an illegal or inappropriate post then please report it to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com (it's not part of my role to deal with this). Any views are mine and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.com.0
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Nobody is going to buy a leasehold flat with those issues AND an excessive service charge,ReadySteadyPop said:Can you sell the property, get away from the stress?1 -
A landlord might buy it if it was cheap enough?MEM62 said:
Nobody is going to buy a leasehold flat with those issues AND an excessive service charge,ReadySteadyPop said:Can you sell the property, get away from the stress?0 -
Might be worth it to get away from the situation? You can`t have people trapped never able to sell or move, what are the government doing about this?Emmia said:
Who will take it on with the issues outlined and no timescale for remediation? Selling with liability for the share of ongoing costs of the 24hr waking watch is likely to mean the OP has to take a big haircut on the selling price...ReadySteadyPop said:Can you sell the property, get away from the stress?
I'd also imagine mortgage-ability would be affected.0
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