LVT/0071/01/14: 73 Cardiff Road, Llandaff
| Jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Applied Rules | Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 - Service Charges |
| Date | 29 December 2014 |
| Year | 2014 |
| Subject Matter | Section 27A |
| Court | Leasehold Valuation Tribunals |
| Judgement Number | LVT/0071/01/14 |
1
Y TRIBIWNLYS EIDDO PRESWYL
RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY TRIBUNAL
LEASEHOLD VALUATION TRIBUNAL
Ref: LVT/0071/01/14
In the matter of s.27A and s.20C of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985
In the matter of 73 Cardiff Road, Llandaff, Cardiff CF5 2AA
Tribunal: Andrew Sheftel (Chairman)
Roger Baynham (Surveyor)
Applicants: BRYAN JOHN NEWELL
CHRISTOPHER JOHNS
PAUL CHRISTOPHER JOHN MATTHEWS
Represented by:Ackland & Co
Mr Jenkins (Counsel)
Respondent: LAWRENCE RICHARD EDMUNDS
Represented by:Capital Law
Mr Sharples (Counsel)
DECISION
The decision in summary
1. For the reasons set out below, the Tribunal determines:
(1) For the service charge years ending 24 March 2010 and 24 March 2011 nothing is
recoverable: the Tribunal disallows the claims in respect of insurance and
scaffolding on account of section 20B of the 1985 Act and the accountancy fees
on the basis that they were not reasonably incurred contrary to section 19 of the
1985 Act;
2
(2) For the service charge year ending 24 March 2013, service charges of £120 in
respect of accountancy fees and £1,605 in respect of insurance premiums are
payable –the Tribunal allows the claims in full;
(3) For the service charge year ending 24 March 2014 , service charges of £120 in
respect of accountancy fees and £1,645.12 in respect of insurance premiums are
payable –the Tribunal allows the claims in full;
(4) As to section 20C, the Tribunal determines that 75% of the Respondent’s costs are
not to be regarded as relevant costs to be taken into account in determining the
amount of any service charge payable by the Applicants.
Background
2. The Tribunal is concerned with applications brought under s.27A of the Landlord and
Tenant Act 1985 (the “1985 Act”) and section 20C of the 1985 Act.
3. The Applicants are long lessees of (respectively) Flat 1, Flat 2 and Flat 3, 73 Cardiff
Road, Llandaff, Cardiff CF5 2AA (“73 Cardiff Road). The Respondent is the freehold
owner of 73 Cardiff Road.
4. The present proceedings are part of a long-running dispute between theparties. The
Respondent has previously served both a statutory demand and County Court
proceedings in respect of sums allegedly owed by the Applicants by way of service
charges in respect of 73 Cardiff Road. However, it should be noted that the parties
agreed that the Tribunal was not prevented from determining any of the items in issue in
these proceedings on the basis of res judicata or issue estoppel, or that they had been
subject of a determination by a court contrary to s.27A(4)(d) of the 1985 Act. More
recently, the right to manage 73 Cardiff Road was acquired by 73 Cardiff Road RTM
Company Limited (of which it is understood the Applicants are members).
5. The Tribunal inspected the premises on 21 October 2014 following which a hearing
took place. Both sides have been legally represented during these proceedings and were
each represented by counsel at the hearing. The Tribunal heard oral evidence from
Christopher Johns and Lawrence Edmunds.
6. The proceedings concern three separate items of expenditure:
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