Tenants in blocks of flats or apartments who have carried out maintenance or replacement works privately at their own expense may still be required to contribute to the cost of similar replacement or maintenance works carried out on other flats as well as on communal areas as part of the service charge.
In Levitt v London Borough of Camden [2011] a tenant in a block of flats was required to contribute towards the cost of replacing heating apparatus in other flats despite replacing the heating system in their own flat when they moved in several months earlier.
The heating system in the building had come to the end of its useful life and was due for replacement. Realising this, Mr and Mrs Levitt replaced the heating system in their on flat when they moved in. initially their heating system was independent of the wider system but was reconnected once the landlord had completed the upgrade in the rest of the building.
Mr and Mrs Levitt argued they were not liable to contribute, through the service charge, towards covering the cost of the upgrade in other flats, only in communal areas.
The tribunal disagreed. It was clear in the lease that the heating system was the responsibility of the landlord and the landlord could therefore recover associated costs as part of the service charge.
Long lease landlords are only able to recover reasonable costs as part of a service charge. This means relevant costs taken into account in determining the level of the service charge must be reasonably incurred and, where incurred during the provision of services or the carrying out of works, these must be delivered to a reasonable standard.
Holmes & Hills has specialists in commercial property law that advise and represent block freeholders, as well as David Dixey, a residential Landlord & Tenant Law expert.
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