By guest writer, Samuel Kitney* The dispute with Viridian Housing, my original landlord, started in 2015 when I noticed that the service charge statement included a charge for gas that we do not have. The only gas in the building is used in the plant room to run the communal heating system and the commercial… Continue reading Optivo on Trial Over Service Charges
This week we interviewed Emma, a Hyde shared ownership tenant who will shortly hand back the keys to the Hyde flat she has lived in for 15 years. Emma will then become homeless. Emma has been driven out of her home - not by rising rents, but by extortionate service charges. One example is the… Continue reading Emma’s Story: Made Homeless by Hyde Service Charges
SHAC's meeting on Service Charges and How to Challenge Them heard from two excellent and informative speakers, with many attendees posting their thanks and appreciation for the contributions. Ed Spencer - SHAC Ed demonstrated a powerful piece of software that he has developed to help analyse service charge statements and receipts. Using the software, he… Continue reading Service Charges: An Informative and Energetic Discussion
Oh, the irony. Or is it hypocrisy? An announcement has hit the headlines. Peter Denton, former CEO of Hyde, has been appointed to lead Homes England, the government body responsible for housing investment. Denton quipped: The government has an ambitious agenda of not just more homes but decent, affordable, safe, energy-efficient ones that sit well… Continue reading Hyde: A Very Bad Apple in a Very Rotten Barrell
Tenants and residents from a wide variety of housing associations have agreed to hold a coordinated service charge 'strike' under SHAC's banner. Action is being taken by residents frustrated at their landlords' failings in relation to extortionate or erroneous service charges, disrepairs, shoddy maintenance, and cladding. No Other Choice Residents described how their problems are… Continue reading Tenants and Residents Hit Back
By James Smith* Two years ago I realised that my landlord, a northern based housing association, was breaking the law by adding an additional charge to the amounts I was paying for gas, electricity and water bills. I challenged this, and although it took me two years and legal action, I was finally successful in… Continue reading Are You Being Overcharged for Utilities?
