Refused payment on service charge?

In general you refer back to the lease which should give guidance on the %age charge.
I assume that you have asked for justification of the change?
Who appointed the agents?

Reply to the comment left by “David Aneurin” at “27/04/2016 – 17:55“:

the landlord of the block have appointment the mgn company
yes the %is in the lease but it was changed by the first landlords as it was wrong and that new % has been in operation since the beginning of the building ie 13years now the new landlord wants to revert to the origional lease %
which is wrong as the unit is smaller and it is being charged for a higher size

Leases do provide different ways in calculating the %age charge of the total. You state the the lease allows for an equal %age for each flat, which is acceptable and used in many developments. Alternatively it can be charged in many other ways including that based on square footage. Both are used and neither is wrong (as you suggest).
I understand you feelings caused by the change 13 years ago therefore you must get advice from Lease (free and can be done by phone)
If not then you may have to get involved in the management which will involve time. If the amount is relatively small unless you want to get involved then it may not be worth your time.

thanks for all the info
does anyone have contact no
or address or web site for lease?
thanks again
David

Lease
Maple House
149 Tottenham Court Road
London
W1T 7BN
02078322500
http://www.lease-advice.org/

this is a free service and a lot of information is available on line. I have not been able to see any guidance or similar cases so you need to speak to Lease. You will speak to a lawyer and should give clear advice.
It would interesting if you let us know what is the result.

In the longer term consider forming a Right to Manage company which puts the management of the block firmly in the hands of the leaseholders. Once again advice can be obtained from L.E.A.S.E, there are many FAQ’s on the site which cover most situations.
Whatever you do be prepared for a long and expensive battle with the freeholder, in my block it cost half a million and took ten years BUT in year one the insurance came down from £38,000 to £3,500 – more than ten to one – and we have been saving ever since on everything we do.

Do not be put off by the length of time or cost quoted above. Forming an RTM and taking over management should take no more than say 8 months and costs are minimal if you do the work yourself.
I have found that most time is spent of finding leaseholders and explaining what you are doing.

Reply to the comment left by “David Aneurin” at “18/05/2016 – 13:31“:

Agreed, if the freeholder plays by the rules, but mine was underhand and put the old management company, the company which held the freehold, into administration. A dozen court hearings later we managed to succeed in forming an RTM company a process which as you rightly say took about eight months. It is easy if tedious to do yourself but we had to employ professional help because one comma wrong and we would have been back in court.

Reply to the comment left by “David Aneurin” at “18/05/2016 – 13:31“:

Agreed, if the freeholder plays by the rules, but mine was underhand and put the old management company, the company which held the freehold, into administration. A dozen court hearings later we managed to succeed in forming an RTM company a process which as you rightly say took about eight months. It is easy if tedious to do yourself but we had to employ professional help because one comma wrong and we would have been back in court.

David,
You have been unlucky in your freeholder howver most RTM application go more smoothly.

Just to tidy this up a bit:
1. An RTM Company can take days to form but
2. The procedure can take up to 8 months from scratch, also
3. The 2002 Act para 78 (7) specifically states: A notice of invitation to participate is not invalidated by any inaccuracy in any of the particulars required by or by virtue of this section.
So some genuine mistake do not invalidate an application.
4. One area which can cause you to restart the process is that if there are to or more buildings separate applications may have to be made.
5. Lease have helpful publications on forming and running an RTM.
6. In most situation going down the RTM route can be rewarding if somewhat demanding but I would recommend it to most developments