LEASEHOLDER vs COUNCIL - CCJ LOST - £11k COSTS - Grounds for Appeal

[julieg123]

Hi,

 

I was wondering if anybody could help me with my situation as per below. Any support or guidance would be gratefully appreciated.

 

I was summoned to Croydon County Court on 24th June 2014 for refusing to give Croydon Council Permission to fit a front door to my leaseholder property, on the grounds I cannot afford to pay for it. Myself and my ex partner purchased the property in May 1990. For the last 24 years the council have refused to paint the front door and when I complained I was told that the door was considered a fixture and not part of the structure of the building therefore the upkeep of the door was my responsibility. They claimed they were only responsible for painting the frame of the door as they considered this to be part of the structure and not a fixture.

 

 

After being informed of this I took it upon myself to purchase and erect a maintenance free UVPC door approximately 15 years ago. In March 2012 I left the property due to domestic violence but I am still paying the mortgage, service charges, water rates and buildings insurance. My ex partner still resides in the property but has no income and is a chronic alcoholic. I work and earn £575.00 monthly and cannot afford to pay the £912.00 the council are asking to carry out the work. I already have substantial debts due to my circumstances. I wrote to Croydon council on the 24th Jan 2012 informing them of my situation and reasons why I could not afford such costs.

 

 

The property is a three-storey block containing 6 flats all with balconies and my property is a ground floor flat. The lease does not clearly state who is responsible for the door (the councils solicitor admitted this in court). Croydon Council wrote to my mortgage provider Santander who then contacted me in relation to the matter. I explained the situation and they agreed door was my responsibility and have had no further contact. I tried to obtain legal aid, but was told as I work and own a property I was not entitled to any assistance. So low and behold I tried to represent myself not really knowing what I was getting myself into! I found it to be a very frightening and traumatic experience.

 

 

It was the judge who suggested I contact the Pro Bar Bono Charity to see if they could assist me as he had adjourned the case until 1st August. I went to C.A.B but they were unable to refer me to the Pro Bar Bono and gave me some Solicitors numbers but after contacting numerous solicitors, leaseholders advisory services, MP's ect I had no luck.

 

I appeared in court yesterday and unfortunately lost my case.

 

I obtained a copy of Croydon Councils Official Leaseholder Guide (published in 2007 but is still in circulation) from Croydon Councils offices on the 16/7/2014 which clearly states “Your Responsibilities as the Leaseholder – external doors to your home (but nor door frames)” .

 

This is of course contradictive to the injunction that was granted by the judge at Croydon County Court. Croydon Council made a full admission in court that up until 2010 the door was the leaseholders responsibility. They then claimed in court they had sent letters notifying all leaseholders that the responsibility of the door was no longer that of the leaseholder and was now the responsibility of the council.

 

 

In court, THE JUDGE ASKED CROYDON COUNCIL IF THEY HAD A COPY OF THIS LETTER TO WHICH THEY SAID NO. The Council admitted they did not have a copy of the letter and were unable to give the court of a date the letter was drafted. I never received a copy of such letter. I feel this letter is of great significance in this case and as the council could not prove it was sent out I should not have lost my case.

 

 

I attended two court appearances 1 hour each and as a result I now have an injunction ordering me to allow Croydon Council to change the door and £11,000.00 worth of costs set against me. I have tried my best not to get myself into the original £912.00 worth of debt Croydon Council quoted for a new door that I knew I couldn't afford to repay. This situation has left me in £12,000 worth of debt that the judge labelled as “very reasonable”

 

Thanks for taking the time to read my post, any assistance or guidance in relation to this matter would be very much appreciated.

Edited August 2, 2014 by citizenB
spacing for easier reading

[unclebulgaria67]

If you go down the appeal route, you are opening yourself up to incur even more costs. Solicitors or direct access barristers are really only interested in taking on certain cases on a pro bono basis. They are ones that may be easy to win or they have a specific interest in. I am not sure whether your situation is one that they would take on. Unfortunately councils such as Croydon employ legal teams using taxpayers money and they are willing to argue the toss. They won't want you to win at appeal, because it will affect other leasehold cases they are involved with, as well as affecting other councils. In my opinion Judges are also biased in favour of public authorities against ordinary people.

 

Might be better to seek help from your local MP and the media.

 

In hindsight it might have been better for you to have allowed the council to fit the new door and to tell them that you would have to pay the cost over a period of time, as you were in a difficult financial position.

[MrMerlin]

Hi. You need to call or email your local councillor and ask them to help you.

 

Do it today and see if they can help you.

[CrappoMan]

So the council took you to court for permission to change your front door, something they admit is their responsibility (post 2010) ? Why do they need your permission to do something that is their responsibility ? Why didn't they just put a letter through your door then a week later turn up at the property and change the door ? Do they not have access to a locksmith to remove the old door ?

 

You need serious legal advice. You needed serious legal advice before you went to court. If your solicitor was confident of winning, it wouldn't have cost you anything!

[unclebulgaria67]

So the council took you to court for permission to change your front door, something they admit is their responsibility (post 2010) ? Why do they need your permission to do something that is their responsibility ? Why didn't they just put a letter through your door then a week later turn up at the property and change the door ? Do they not have access to a locksmith to remove the old door ?

 

You need serious legal advice. You needed serious legal advice before you went to court. If your solicitor was confident of winning, it wouldn't have cost you anything!

 

The council own the freehold and the OP the leasehold. Over a period of time, there have been changes about who is responsible for the door. Under the leasehold terms the owner of the lease will no doubt be responsible for the cost of the door being replaced and for allowing the council access to change it.

 

I know this is a bit odd, but I have seen media articles on this exact position before. The leaseholder is basically committed to paying for stufff that the council as freeholder wants to do. In these blocks of flats with a mixture of council tenants and leaseholder owners, the council as freeholder likes to have certain works done, when they want to do it. It may be that the council wanted all the doors to be the same or they were in the process of doing works to all of the flats.

 

When people buy the leasehold of the flats, they should have been given legal advice about the potential costs they may incur, if the council as freeholders wanted to do any work. The OP may also be responsible for paying towards other works involving the block of flats.

 

I can't see any Solicitors taking this on a pro bono or no win no fee. Local MP and media is probably best. See if you can embarass the council.

[Andyorch]

Thread moved to the appropriate forum

 

Regards

Andy

[steampowered]

On what basis were £11 of costs awarded? What track was this case allocated to?