A group of leaseholders in Bromley have secured a significant victory, winning a repayment of approximately £3,800 from their landlord for service charges relating to work they did not request, such as window and gutter cleaning.
The six residents of Restoration Apartments on Page Heath Villas took their case to a property tribunal, initially challenging nearly £16,000 in service charges imposed for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 financial years. While the tribunal found the majority of the fees to be justified, it ruled in the leaseholders' favour on several key points, ordering the refund.
The Road to Right to Manage
This dispute came to a head after the leaseholders obtained the Right to Manage (RTM) for their building in April 2025. By forming a special company, they officially took over the management of Restoration Apartments from the freeholder, who had been using Eagerstates as the managing agents.
This move to self-management was pivotal to their case, as it shifted responsibility for certain services and gave them a stronger footing to challenge costs.
Unjustified Costs and the Tribunal's Ruling
The tribunal scrutinised each contested charge. It disallowed the window cleaning costs, which totalled just over £1,000 across the two years. The tribunal agreed with the applicants that, once they had informed Eagerstates of their new responsibilities under the RTM and stated they did not want the service, the cleaning became "an unnecessary and unwelcome expense".
Furthermore, a combined cost of £2,850 for gutter cleaning, drains servicing, fire health and safety services, and a repair fund was also disallowed. The tribunal found there was "no real reason" for this work to be carried out immediately before the residents obtained the RTM.
Costs Deemed Reasonable by the Tribunal
Not all the challenged fees were refunded. The tribunal allowed several costs in full, including:
- £1,500 for a surveyor to prepare a pre-planned maintenance schedule.
- £2,100 for a surveyor to prepare an insurance reinstatement cost assessment, deemed a "prudent cost".
- A management fee of £2,184 for 2024/25.
The tribunal also considered the building insurance cost of £1,779.07 for 2024/25 to be reasonable. However, it ordered a pro-rata refund for the period the leaseholders had already covered the insurance themselves after taking over the RTM. Similar pro-rata repayments were ordered for the 2025/26 insurance fee, an accountant's fee, and a management fee.
A Wider Issue for London Leaseholders
This case highlights the ongoing tensions surrounding leasehold service charges in London. Disputes over opaque and often extortionate charges are frequently brought before property tribunals. Such costs are widely seen as exacerbating the housing crisis by making property ownership unaffordable and trapping people in unsellable homes.
In a positive step for leaseholders, the government introduced new rights through the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024. Coming into effect in July, the act mandates standardised service charge documentation, providing clearer details on how charges are calculated and spent, thereby empowering residents to challenge unreasonable bills more effectively.
