Rendall and Rittner threaten leaseholders with unspecified service charge increases in in relation to The Building Safety Act

In an update (27.10.23) to all leaseholders at all developments which they ‘manage’ Rendall and Rittner state that

”The Building Safety Act introduces many new rules and duties for the management of fire and building safety, and these will vary depending on the height of your building/s, with the greater number of measures in place for high-rise buildings, over 18m or seven storeys.

In light of the above, we want to make leaseholders aware that a number of new costs will be added the 2024 service charge budgets. These new costs are a direct result of the new act and are essential in order to be compliant. Please note that these costs will vary from building to building, so we are not currently in a position to confirm exactly what new costs will be applicable to you. Once your budget has been prepared and approved by the Landlord or Resident Directors, we will provide full details together with a copy of next year’s budget’.

However the Act makes clear that leaseholders ARE NOT necessarily the first port of call for any increased costs, and in many instances it is the FREEHOLDER who will have to pay – The Act states: (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-building-safety-act)

”Protecting leaseholders

Through new leaseholder protection measures, the Act eradicates the idea that leaseholders should be the first port of call to pay for historical safety defects.

Building owners will not legally be able to charge qualifying leaseholders (defined under the Act but including those living in their own homes and with no more than three UK properties in total) for any costs in circumstances where a building (in the majority of cases meaning those over five storeys or eleven metres tall) requires cladding to be removed or remediated.

Qualifying leaseholders will also have robust protections from the costs associated with non-cladding defects, including interim measures like waking watches”.

For Rendall and Rittner to write such a vague update, which threatens increases but gives no account of what costs specifically will increase, or what any additional charges would be for, It looks very much like ‘expectation management’ or writing their excuses in advance. My message to Rendall and Rittner is that this is not a license to increase service charges. If the Act involves increased costs which can legitimately be passed onto leaseholders then specify what they are likely to be, and make sure they are fully itemised in the budget and accounts, otherwise you are simply causing more concern to leaseholders for no benefit.

Category : Building Safety Act, rendall and rittner, Service charges, Transparency