Service charges

Practice notes

Residential service charges—disputes and procedures

This Practice Note explains the procedure for handling some of the most common residential service charge disputes under the Landlord and Tenant Act...

Produced in partnership with Victoria Jones 10th May

Practice notes

Claim form—the contents

This Practice Note considers the current position and provides guidance on the interpretation and application of the relevant provisions of the CPR....

7th May

Q&As

Major works were carried out by the landlord to a commercial unit but not invoiced to the tenant and not recovered as service charge. The lease ended and a new lease was granted to the tenant. Can works that were carried out under the old lease be charged as service charge under the new lease when there are no clauses in the new lease allowing the landlord to claim for services provided during the old lease? Can the tenant be held liable for the works under the old lease once it has expired and no invoice was rendered during the term of the lease?

A commercial lease will often contain provision for the landlord to recover from the tenant the costs of maintaining the premises, for example in...

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 4th May

Practice notes

The Heat Network Metering and Billing Regulations—heat supplier and landlord obligations

The Heat Network (Metering and Billing) Regulations 2014, SI 2014/3120, as amended (the Regulations) transpose parts of the EU Energy Efficiency...

Produced in partnership with Tom Bainbridge of Lux Nova Partners 30th Apr

Practice notes

Quick guide to where to issue common property dispute applications

Coronavirus (COVID-19): During the current pandemic, legislation and changes to practice and procedure in the courts and tribunals have been...

29th Apr

Q&As

In a mixed use development where a party is taking a 999-year lease of part for commercial use and a management company has been formed to service the common parts, etc would it be normal to restrict membership of the management company to the residential leaseholders?

The structure of the:•leasehold interests•service charge accounts•management obligations and composition of management companieswill largely depend...

15th Apr

Q&As

Do service charge funds need to be held in a designated deposit/trust account?

Where section 42 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 (LTA 1987) applies ie the premises let are residential and two or more tenants are required by...

Produced in partnership with Helen Galley of XXIV Old Buildings 15th Apr

Q&As

Can you levy a demand for service charge incurred in the interim period before the purchase of the head lease by serving a demand on the headlessee, so that in turn it can recover from the flat lessees?

The payment and recovery of service charges is primarily determined by the relevant provisions of the applicable lease, subject to some statutory...

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 15th Apr

Q&As

If a commercial lease contains a provision to pay service charge but service charge has never been demanded, is there a limit as to what period a landlord can request backdated service charge for?

In the case of commercial premises, the protection afforded to residential tenants by the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 (LTA 1985) will not apply. As...

Produced in partnership with Georgia Whiting of 4 King’s Bench Walk 15th Apr

Q&As

The landlord pays an estates rentcharge and has been recovering the sums paid via the service charge in a lease with one of its tenants. The scope of the service charge is not wide enough to cover such charges. Can the tenant bring a claim for restitution for unjust enrichment?

Subject to the terms of the lease and any other agreement reached by the parties in respect of the position where service charges paid by a tenant...

15th Apr

Q&As

Where a landlord of a commercial property firstly fails to demand payment of service charge for a number of years and secondly fails to issue service charge certificates at the end of each year in accordance with the terms of the lease, will the landlord be precluded from recovering the service charge?

This Q&A arises in the context of a commercial lease so that the various statutory requirements which must be met when claiming service charges of...

15th Apr

Q&As

Where a tenant pays service charge quarterly (and the service charge includes the tenant’s proportion of the insurance premium), but the landlord is required to pay the insurance premium in a single payment, can the landlord recover the whole of the tenant’s proportion of the premium in the first quarterly service charge instalment or must it be spread across the quarterly payment dates?

As a very general rule, the services provided by a landlord (or a management body) to leaseholders over the course of a service charge year are...

Produced in partnership with Desmond Kilcoyne 15th Apr

Q&As

Can companies bring claims in relation to service charge disputes in the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber), or is it reserved for residential property disputes?

For guidance in respect of the court procedure for commercial service charges, see Practice Note: Commercial service charges—disputes and procedures,...

15th Apr

Precedents

Letter of claim—contractual debt claim—in compliance with the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims

[On the headed notepaper of the creditor’s solicitors]FAO [Insert name of debtor][Name of debtor’s solicitors][Address line 1][Address line...

9th Apr

COVID-19

In-house

Precedents

Covering letter to accompany Reply Form in response to letter of claim sent pursuant to the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims

[Name of creditor’s solicitors firm][Address line 1][Address line 2][Postcode][Date][Ref: [insert reference]]Dear [insert name][Creditor’s name] AND...

9th Apr

COVID-19

Practice notes

Service charges in commercial property—summary of the third edition of the service charge code [Archived]

ARCHIVED: The third edition of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Code of Practice ‘Service charges in commercial property’ (and all...

8th Apr

Practice notes

Residential—statutory consultation procedure for service charges

When do the consultation requirements apply?A landlord must consult with its tenants before:•undertaking qualifying works (defined in section 20ZA of...

8th Apr

Practice notes

A review of the RICS Professional Statement on Service Charges in Commercial Property (1st edition)

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Professional Statement on Service Charges in Commercial Property, 1st edition (the Service Charge...

8th Apr

Practice notes

Code for residential service charges

EnglandThe Approval of Code of Management Practice (Residential Management) (Service Charges) (England) Order 2016, SI 2016/518 approves the Service...

8th Apr

Practice notes

Commercial service charges—what expenses can the landlord recover?

Repair and improvementsA tenant will not generally be expected to pay for the landlord to upgrade or improve its property as opposed to repairing it....

8th Apr

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