Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to award leaseholders with increased right of appeal on decisions that their property management company and freeholder has taken on enhancements and maintenance to their properties or communal areas.

Leaseholders have existing rights of input into, and challenge of, decisions made by their freeholders on enhancements or maintenance of their properties or communal areas.

The law is already clear that service charges, and any increase in costs, must be reasonable and where costs relate to work or services, the work or services must be of a reasonable standard. The consultation process set out in Section 20 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 further sets out a process associated with major works. Leaseholders may make an application to the First-tier Tribunal for it to make a determination on the reasonableness of their service charges or on section 20 grounds.

Some leaseholders will also have access to redress schemes – if their freeholder is a social landlord or employs a managing agent, they are currently obliged to be a part of such a scheme. We intend to extend this requirement to all freeholders.

We also established an independent working group chaired by Lord Best to raise standards across the property sector, which considered how the service charge regime, including transparency of charges, potential caps and major works consultations, operated. The working group published its final report to Government (see: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/regulation-of-property-agents-working-group-report ) and we are considering the report’s recommendations.