Leaseholders in Bath have been hit with massive “unexpected” charges by housing association Curo which owns the freehold to their building.
Ken Pearson wants Curo’s board to take action | Photo © John Wimperis
One charge was suddenly increased by almost ten times in 2022. Ken Pearson, who lives in the 17–32 Hillside Road block of flats, said it had left him paying a third of his pension to Curo.
He said: “The increase was made as major works were needed on our block of flats. However, it is clear that Curo didn’t prepare the leaseholders and we are faced with very large unexpected bills.”
Mr Pearson is one of three leaseholders who own flats in the building, the rest of which are rentals owned by Curo.
As leaseholders, they are required to pay charges for the upkeep of the building, including into a “sinking fund” which is intended to ensure there is a fund of money ready to cover any unexpected work.
For about five years, this charge was about £130 a year until 2021, when it went up to £189.
But when the building’s roof started leaking and needed replacing, there was not the money in the fund and Curo dramatically increased the charge by almost ten times over.
Mr Pearson said: “When they suddenly realised there was going to be some major work to be done, it was increased from £130 a year to £1,767 a year. Which obviously hit our pockets.”
Leaseholders have argued that Curo should have known the 1960s roof would need replacing and factored this into the sinking fund earlier.
Curo, which took over the building in 2012, thought the roof had already been repaired in the 1990s – but leaseholders have said there is no evidence of this and Curo had failed to plan.
Mr Pearson said: “Curo just won’t accept that they are responsible in any way.”
As of 2023, the housing association’s approval rating amongst its leaseholders was just 25%.
He added: “The whole thing now is a major problem that we face but we are getting a lot of support thankfully from Jess David, our local councillor.”
Councillor David (Moorlands, Liberal Democrat) said: “I am very concerned that Curo leaseholders are being presented with large and unexpected bills for repairs that could have been anticipated and planned for.
“I am supporting residents at Hillside Road who have assembled a detailed case to challenge the unexpected charge they have received for a roof replacement, and I hope that we can reach a fair compromise.
“Curo’s senior management needs to look again at how the major works are planned for and ensure that leaseholders are treated fairly.”
Leaseholders were initially told they could pay off their new sinking fund debt over two years, then four years.
Mr Pearson said: “Curo were supposed to prepare leaseholders for major works through our sinking fund but for ten years they did not. Now they want us to pay for their mistake over four years? Hardly seems fair.”
Now leaseholders are considering taking Curo to the housing ombudsman or tribunal. They are also calling on the housing association’s board to investigate the matter.
A spokesperson for Curo said: “Under the terms of their lease, homeowners have to pay their share of the costs for maintaining and repairing their building, and customers are aware of this when they buy their home.
“We understand that the recent increase in costs was substantial, so we offered the customer a number of solutions, including an option to spread the costs over four years.
“We also removed the management fee to acknowledge that these were emergency repairs.
“However, the customer has refused all of our proposals, and the only solution they will accept is to not pay their share of the costs, which like all the homeowners in the building, they are legally obliged to cover.
“We’ve suggested that if the homeowner does not agree they should take the case to a first-tier tribunal for an independent judgement.”
John Wimperis, Local Democracy Reporter
