Landlord wins dispute with tenant over service charge for insurance
September 5th 2019By Natalie Tatton Solicitor A landlord has won a dispute with a tenant over service charges for insurance dating back nearly 15 years. The case involved a tenant who held the lease of a flat in a building comprising of three flats and a commercial unit. Under the lease, the tenant covenanted to contribute one-sixth of the building’s specified costs and expenses, including insurance, through the service charge. Between 2005…
Help to Buy scheme to start allowing 35-year mortgages
September 2nd 2019By Elizabeth Crouch Head of Residential Conveyancing Homeowners buying a property under Help to Buy are now allowed to take out 35-year mortgages. The government has moved to close what it describes as a loophole, which has seen purchasers using the scheme facing difficulties and uncertainty if they wanted to take out a mortgage with a term of more than 25 years. Under the changes, which are taking effect immediately,…
More additions to ‘Good Work Plan’ to protect low-paid workers
August 20th 2019By Claire Davies Director The government has introduced a new set of additions to its ‘Good Work Plan’ which aims to increase the rights of workers. Some of the key elements of the scheme include: workers to be given enhanced rights to tackle unscrupulous employers who do not comply with the law a new body that will enforce holiday pay for vulnerable workers and ensure agency workers are not underpaid…
Agency worker not entitled to same hours as permanent employee
August 15th 2019By Joanne Stronach Head of Employment & HR An agency worker has lost his claim that he should be entitled to the same number of working hours as a permanent member of staff. Dominik Kocur was employed by recruitment company Angard Staffing Solutions, who provided staff for Royal Mail. Kocur regularly worked alongside permanent members of Royal Mail staff, performing similar duties. However, whereas the Royal Mail workers were guaranteed…
Government to strengthen sexual harassment laws
August 7th 2019By Claire Davies Director The government is look for ways to strengthen the law to give employees more protection from sexual harassment. It is launching a consultation and is inviting victims to have their say on what sort of changes would be beneficial. One of the things being considered is how to strengthen and clarify the law to give explicit protections against third party harassment. It had been thought that…
Landlord was entitled to give tenant only two months’ notice
August 5th 2019By Mark Aspin Director & Head of Dispute Resolution The Court of Appeal has ruled that a landlord was within his rights to end a tenancy agreement without giving his tenant the six-month notice period required under the Housing Act 1988. The tenant, Sarah Bamber, had agreed a seven-year tenancy on the property, which included a 12-month starter period. During this starter period, the agreement stated that the tenancy could…
UK house prices jumped 0.7% between March and April
July 31st 2019By Elizabeth Crouch Head of Residential Conveyancing The latest House Price Index figures show that the cost of an average home in the UK jumped 0.7% between March and April. The annual rise to April was 1.4%, bringing the cost of the average property to £228,903. In England, the annual rise was 1.1%, with the average property costing £245,128. The regional data for England shows that: the North East experienced…
Buyer of insurance firm compensated for warranty breach
July 29th 2019A company has been compensated for a breach of warranty after it bought an insurance firm. David Tew Associate Solicitor reports on this recent case. The case involved a firm that sold policies related to motor or household insurance. When it was sold in 2014, the seller provided warranties that the company accounts were accurate and a fair representation of the company’s financial situation. The agreement stated that the seller…
Parental leave is not equivalent to statutory maternity leave
July 25th 2019By Joanne Stronach Head of Employment & HR Two recent cases involving fathers taking paternity leave have highlighted a defining difference between parental leave and a mother’s statutory maternity leave. One male employee who worked for a technology firm sued for sex discrimination after his employers insisted he should not be paid at the same rate as mothers on statutory maternity leave. A similar case saw a policeman claim sex…
Property owner must pay £81,000 for work completed on cancelled job
July 22nd 2019By Stephanie Johnson Associate A dispute between a property owner and builder has been settled by the High Court, with the owner ordered to pay for work completed, even though he was not happy with it and the job was cancelled. The parties had entered into a JCT minor works building contract for work to be done on the owner’s property. However, after some initial work had been completed, the…
