Breach of lease by other tenants

[Suetheramble]

I live in a block of flats where the some residents run the management company. There are satalite dishes everywhere external cables to 75% of the flats and other breaches of the lease. When I brought this up at the AGM I was shouted down being told it was tenants human rights to do as they please.The management company who seem unaware of how a lease works told me to sort it out myself( most of the committee members are in breach of the lease) I sought legal advise and was told this is a clear breach of lease and should not be allowed.
My question is do I complain to the freeholders if the management company is not doing the job and do they have a legal obligation to rectify this?

[cassa333]

Why don't you want people to have satalite dishes?

Although technicaly they are in breach of the agreement when was the lease agreed? If the leesehold management company is run by the owners/tenants then it is possible that they hold the freehold? If so they could just legaly change the covanents. If there was a vote you would obviously loose.

What is the point of argueing with them? If it is purely for asthetic reasons you don't like them then perhaps you could suggest that the management company look into trunking to hide the cables. This would cost you on your yearly management fee though.

Just because you don't want satilite doesn't mean no one else in your building should.

Without knowing you or the real circumstances around this I get the feeling you are a 'victor Meldrew' and just like a reason to moan. Although I do realise I could be totaly wrong and that 75% of the tenants/owners are just being selfish to want 'everyday' comforts!

[Androcles]

We had this problem in our Management company and we decided that we could not buck the trend and ignore techology developments, and to keep things under control, we got permission from the freeholder to install a communal dish for all the flats, and ran the supply to each flat. We carried half of the cost from the contingency funds and the rest from a levy on each flat. Althoug it was a director's decision, we did run a poll of leaseholders and had enough votes in favour to mean it was a supported decision.

We also made the decision to use a managing agent to manage the face to face relations with residents, for exactly the reason you raise - it is easier for the professionals to deal with awkward residents, and they also have the legal and other facilities to call on if needed.

Our directors have always enforced the covenants strictly because we took the view if you don't do so, you lose them, and it sounds as if in your block you have. it would be interesting to see what would happen if the directors of your management company tried to enforce another covenant, when one or more have been breached bigtime already. Your lawyers have told you this is a breach, but it is difficult to get it enforced without the support of the comany.

Isuspect that your only route to make the management company operate correctly is to vote them out at the next AGM, and replace them with people who will enforce the covenants, which in terms of winning enough votes is easier said than done....... In my experience Freeholders do not give a monkey's unless they can make money out of it.

Sorry, not a lot for your comfort!

[Suetheramble]

To change a lease needs I believe 100% of residents to be in favour off. In others blocks of flats I have lived there has been one satalite dish which serves the estate. The look of the flats is dreadful with cables running all over the place and sat dish on the balcony's once sat and cables come in it is hard to say no to washing on balconies (a condition in most leases) etc it just lowers the look of the estate

[Suetheramble]

Thank you Androcles you are really confirming my thoughts(sadly!!)

[New Judge]

It's a shame that your fellow tenants believe that it is their "...human rights to do as they please."

As odious as the Human Rights laws are, they most certainly do not confer such rights, and in any case only apply to the actions of government or public authorities.

Actions by commercial companies are governed by contract law and the like and it is within that framework that this issue must be resolved.

[bushbaby_de]

Ok a slightly underhand suggestion here but....

Having more than two satellite dishes on a block of flats requires planning permission. Report them to your Council's Planning Enforcement Team and they are likely to make the management company get all the dishes taken down.

[Suetheramble]

Brill. Will do!!