Section 4 - Consultation for major works

We make every effort to consult leaseholders on any housing management issue that will affect them. Where you are responsible for costs for work, we will consult with you as set out in law.

Major works

These are large repair jobs, such as replacing roofs or windows, or redecoration, which need to be done as buildings gradually wear out or need repair. They are almost always planned well in advance, except in emergencies.

Your rights to be consulted

Under the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002, we must consult you before we begin any major repairs, maintenance or replacements:

• That you will be required to pay more than £250 towards, or
• Where a long-term contract exists and you must pay more than £100 per financial year.

We must consult you about which contractor to use if we want to enter new agreements with contractors that last more than 12 months.

We will consult you as an individual leaseholder and, if you are a member of a recognised Residents Association (RA), we will also consult you through this.

The consultation process varies slightly according to the type of work that we propose to do.

Examples of long-term agreements include contracts for:

• Lift maintenance
• Maintenance of door-entry systems
• Grounds maintenance
• Maintaining communal lighting
• Cleaning of windows and communal areas.

We can only charge you for work if we have followed this consultation procedure. If we do not consult you, we can only charge you the amount (£250) set out in the regulations.

It’s unlikely to happen, but we do not have to consult you during an emergency, or during circumstances beyond our reasonable control. We can still charge you the cost of the work, so long as the First Tier Tribunal Service is satisfied that we were justified in doing the work without proper consultation and that the charges are reasonable.

This may apply in cases of very urgent work needed to protect health and safety, or for specialised work where it is difficult to get more than one estimate. Examples may include; burst water mains, collapsed chimneys or roofs and falling masonry.

Where the cost of any works to each leaseholder is under £250 and formal consultation is not required, we aim to contact you at least eight weeks before the proposed start date, to let you know that works are planned to your property.

If we need to survey your property, we will contact you at least four weeks before the proposed start date to make a convenient appointment to survey your property before the work is carried out. For some works, such as external painting, we will not need to contact you regarding a survey.