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Sheffield council - overcharging leaseholders?

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Hi,from what I can gather,if a housing authority owns the free-hold,no collective disenfranchisement.Going back to my original post about being charged top dollar for refurbishment,I've just read an article which states so called property maintenance companies,i.e.Kier,and housing authorities have a so called "profit sharing agreement"that is why Kier get all the work.The government knows that this is happening,it should be outlawed.

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The original legally binding Keir price was in the outline intent letter with the price of 5.5k per block. I've asked them to show how this spiralled to 22k without a single letter of explanation. Legally I think we have a challenge and I will see them in court if need be after taking advice. We will not be paying as I believe they are in breach of their obligations to fairly explain and advise of all costs

 

---------- Post added 25-02-2016 at 17:52 ----------

 

Who is the local councillor and then mp for the area please if you guys know?we should be contacting them about this collectively

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Hey,good to hear from you Chris T70.Yes time to stand up and be counted.I spoke to both elected councillors for S8 area last Saturday,Roy Minn and Julie Gledhill,he was more pro-council but she agreed more with my point of view and was going to bring the situation up at Council meeting.The MP for Heeley is Louise Haigh,I will be e-mailing her.It's time the LMT stopped treating the Leaseholders like cash-cows.

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Hi,from what I can gather,if a housing authority owns the free-hold,no collective disenfranchisement.Going back to my original post about being charged top dollar for refurbishment,I've just read an article which states so called property maintenance companies,i.e.Kier,and housing authorities have a so called "profit sharing agreement"that is why Kier get all the work.The government knows that this is happening,it should be outlawed.

its a wonder Sheffield council deal with kier after they were fined for rigging contracts

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8268116.stm ive said it for years that kier are ripping council taxpayers off

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I would bet money on it ,that Kier and Sheffield City Council have a "profit sharing agreement"I read yesterday in the intouch Council magazine that Sheffield City Council are taking the repair and maintenance work off of Kier in 2017,the penny has finally dropped for the Council,that they can get it done cheaper with their own people.It did also say that Kier would still be involved in major works,in other words where the money is and easily open to fraud.

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I would bet money on it ,that Kier and Sheffield City Council have a "profit sharing agreement"I read yesterday in the intouch Council magazine that Sheffield City Council are taking the repair and maintenance work off of Kier in 2017,the penny has finally dropped for the Council,that they can get it done cheaper with their own people.It did also say that Kier would still be involved in major works,in other words where the money is and easily open to fraud.

 

but will they be still using the same suppliers for materials and still being charged top whack for them ? id like to think that being brought back in house actually means that. take it from someone who knows how they operate, that for some of the materials council taxpayers are being charged 3 times as much from places they could get it cheaper

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Hi ChrisT70, we too have received an estimation of 3k for our share. We have always paid promptly but this time the figure is just too much. Have they got back to you? Are you going to get legal advice? We definitely need to do something this time instead of paying outrages amount for some gutters. BW

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but will they be still using the same suppliers for materials and still being charged top whack for them ? id like to think that being brought back in house actually means that. take it from someone who knows how they operate, that for some of the materials council taxpayers are being charged 3 times as much from places they could get it cheaper

 

I'll be very surprised if it's cheaper to bring repairs and maintenance back in house. There will be all the overheads of employing individuals, and managing them. A whole new department perhaps. And let's not forget the cost of rebranding. All those costs currently sit with Kier, and were one of the main reasons why local authorities outsourced R&M departments in the first place. Swings and roundabouts.

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Hi ChrisT70, we too have received an estimation of 3k for our share. We have always paid promptly but this time the figure is just too much. Have they got back to you? Are you going to get legal advice? We definitely need to do something this time instead of paying outrages amount for some gutters. BW

 

Hi,Like yourself we have always paid promptly but,these charges are beyond the pale,totally outrageous.Today I've e-mailed the Sheffield Star and detailed everything about what the Leasehold Management Team are attempting to do to the leaseholders.I've asked them to please print it in the "Your Say"section and if they want to turn it into an article I'll be glad to give them more details,let's hope they respond.I sent a letter to Leasehold Management Team,detailing my observations and objections,which they will have received by February 19th,but no reply,which to me smacks of highhandedness and arrogance.E-mail the LMT and raise your objections,e-mail the Sheffield Star and let them know,and anyway,the bottom line is Kier's work is shoddy and sub-standard and last but not least why are Sheffield City Council dealing with them when a few years ago they were fined£18,000,000 by the OFT for rigging contracts.The whole thing stinks,dodgy dealings indeed!

 

---------- Post added 24-03-2016 at 21:25 ----------

 

The more people who complain about these rip-off charges for glittering,the more Sheffield City Council are going to take notice.Find out who your local councillors are,if they have surgeries find out where and go and complain.Who's your local MP e-mail them and complain,keep your grievances coming into the Forum,where else would someone say,we are going to do this work and you are going to pay X amount of money,when you've had no input into the decision and you certainly didn't ask for it to be done.The leaseholders are paying for the upkeep of the building,but the Council own it,all you own is your flat,up to the ceiling.You couldn't make it up!

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I'll be very surprised if it's cheaper to bring repairs and maintenance back in house. There will be all the overheads of employing individuals, and managing them. A whole new department perhaps. And let's not forget the cost of rebranding. All those costs currently sit with Kier, and were one of the main reasons why local authorities outsourced R&M departments in the first place. Swings and roundabouts.

of course there will be some costs involved from the beginning. local authorities chose the private sector believing they would benefit in the long run. years down the line and these companies have seen their profits rise and the taxpayer paying for it. I just hope that they change their suppliers and will then see some savings recouped. if not the taxpayer will be hit again. swings and roundabouts :roll:

 

---------- Post added 25-03-2016 at 08:45 ----------

 

No.

RTM does not apply if the freehold reversion is owned by a Local Housing Authority.

See para. 4 of Schedule 6 to the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002.

so how can these people get anything done ?

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The more people who complain about these rip-off charges for glittering,the more Sheffield City Council are going to take notice.Find out who your local councillors are,if they have surgeries find out where and go and complain.Who's your local MP e-mail them and complain,keep your grievances coming into the Forum,where else would someone say,we are going to do this work and you are going to pay X amount of money,when you've had no input into the decision and you certainly didn't ask for it to be done.The leaseholders are paying for the upkeep of the building,but the Council own it,all you own is your flat,up to the ceiling.You couldn't make it up!

 

thats the price you pay for having bought your flat at a vastly reduced rate, you are paying towards work to keep the block in good condition as the rent payers have been doing every week, its pretty clear when you buy the flat.

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thats the price you pay for having bought your flat at a vastly reduced rate, you are paying towards work to keep the block in good condition as the rent payers have been doing every week, its pretty clear when you buy the flat.

 

What if they didn't buy it off the council and have bought it privately off someone who bought it at the vastly reduced rate? :rolleyes:

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