Insurance News Archive
Property firm endures record fine for luxury property management
A firm of property owners has seen a property management firm that they hired become subject of a record near £1 million settlement after a leasehold valuation tribunal (LVT) earlier this month.
Leaseholders at the luxury apartments in St George Wharf, Vauxhall, had been fighting Peverel's excessive management charges for four years. The charges had stretched back over a decade as had the firm's practice of employing some its own subsidiaries to provide CCTV and insurance services.
The occurrence is extremely rare as most landlords accept the need to treat tenants well in such a competitive market and make sure they're covered with adequate landlords property insurance.
Rob Perrins, chief executive of the building's owners, Berkeley Group, said: "Problems at St George Wharf have caused us considerable reputational damage."
"This should not have happened and the residents should not have had to fight this for four years. We should have admitted this earlier and publicly, and we owe the residents an apology."
Leaseholders include famous faces such as John Major, Chelsea Clinton and Lee Ryan.
Posted by Dan Winters
21 Sep 2011
