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Who looks after your fire alarm system? Page 15 £4.50 Issue 105 / 2020 The Magazine For Apartment Living Insurance Special edition
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TOP tips
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reasons to review your insurance in 2020
contents ISSUE 105 news 5 Grenfell charges delays
indepth
19 Safely ‘under cover’? Phil Parkinson and Katie Edwards look at the challenges surrounding insurance against terrorism 21 10 reasons to review your
frustrating, say families There may be no charges made over the Grenfell tragedy until 2025 7 Property management firm's boost for RTM Rendall & Rittner expands its Right to Manage offering 9 Green light for £1bn docklands project An East London regeneration project will provide 1,500 apartments after plans were approved
insurance in 2020 The start of the year is a good time to check your insurance
10 TOP tips
Facilities firm adds heating division
11 Appointments The latest
appointments in the industry inresidence
inbox 16 Questions and Call of the month! Readers ask the experts
Insurance
13 Elevate the importance of lift records! David Pickering looks at what lift documents need to be in place if taking over a new building 15 Who looks after
your fire alarm system? Check your contractor is qualified, urges Paul Bennett
Specialists in the installation and maintenance of smoke control and fire safety systems
Emergency Lighting Fire Safety Signage Remote Monitoring Smoke Vent Systems Dry Risers Fire Risk Assessments Fire Alarm Systems Fire Hydrants Portable Fire Extinguishers
Further discounts for multiple services UKAS - SSAIB - BAFE Third Party Accredited • Safe Contractor, Construction line and CHAS Accredited • Members of the Fire Industry Association and Smoke Control Association • Fully Insured
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@newsontheblock News on the Block
News on the Block is the leading independent magazine providing help and advice to flat owners, landlords, managing agents and their professional advisors. www.newsontheblock.com SMS US: 0786 002 1858 inpractice 27 Why you need a reserve fund Richard Thwaites explains what it is and why it matters 29 The long and the ‘short’ of it! Leah Veasey explains what you can do if you want to buy a flat with a short lease 31 Can someone just sort out the bin store? Conan offers a solution to dealing with a smelly store intheknow 33 Upcoming events in the industry There’s another packed calendar of events in the next fewmonths
FORMORE INFORMATION www.newsontheblock.com
23 How do you value your interests? James Paul asks: What would it cost y o u to rebuild your block? 24 When commission earnings aren’t legitimate Paul Robertson looks at when insurance commission becomes embezzlement 25 Why you need an up to date valuation Don't let your buildings declared value collect dust
Thursday, 4th June Save the date
directory 34 Help at hand A selection of companies offering help to leaseholders
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ISSUE 105
DILLONS
Don’t gamble with your block management Dillons have many years of block management experience and a range of services including the collection of service charges, annual accounts preparation, staff supervision, organisation of small & major repair works, liason with lessees & preparation of section 20 notices.
So you can be sure with Dillons managing your block your’re in safe hands.
For full details of our property management service please contact us.
Your Local Residential Managing Agent 619 Holloway Road, London N19 5SS t: 020 7561 5230 f: 020 7561 5231
e: [email protected] w:www.dillonsproperty.co.uk
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Grenfell charges delays frustrating, say families
A n artist is at war in court with his millionaire neighbour who he claims stole half of his front garden whilst he was abroad. William Savage says Richard Bankart, his neighbour in the basement, “dug out” part of the garden at the front of his flat in Stockwell, South West London. Banker turned multimedia artist Mr Savage, 45, claims eco-tech expert Mr Bankart, 59, then built a sunken patio on it while he was away living and studying in Paris. The artist is now asking a judge to grant an injunction barring Mr Bankart from “his continued trespass and use of his front garden”. The pair have been battling over the patio since 2003. Basement garden battle Woman dies in flats fall A woman died after she was believed to be visiting Littlecross House apartments in Bristol when the incident took place. Police were called to the scene and found a body at around 2am on 12 January. Three women were arrested in connection with incident and were released under investigation, police said. fell from a block of flats. The 50-year-old
F amilies of the victims of Grenfell may have to wait until 2025 to find out if anyone will be charged for the 72 deaths. Police have told relatives and survivors that they won’t make any decision on charges until after the second phase of the public inquiry into the disaster is complete. The latest stage of the probe began in January and has already caused anger because the firms involved have asked for immunity from prosecution. The second phase is more complex and likely E xisting leasehold legislation has caused hostility and disputes during the enfranchisement process, a leading member of ALEP has said. Barrister Nicola Muir made the comments as she welcomed Law Commission proposals which, if adopted, could benefit both leaseholders and freeholders when going through enfranchisement. Nicola, who works at Tanfield Chambers, said: “The current system
the inquiry, until at least 2023 to publish his final report. They say they will then have to wait a further two years for police and prosecutors to decide what charges, if any, can be brought. Shah Aghlani, whose mother Sakina Afrasehabi, and aunt, Fatima Afrasehabi died on the 18th floor of the tower said: “It is frustrating. Justice delayed is justice denied. "Quite a few of us think charges should come sooner rather than later but they [police] keep saying they don’t want to miss anything. deadline, they may have to accept a low or unfair price for their interest,” Nicola added. The Law Commission is due to publish its report setting out reforms to the current system to make enfranchisement simpler, cheaper and quicker within weeks. She welcomed the proposals that would scrap “existing draconian sanctions” for both leaseholder and freeholder if key deadlines are missed. Nicola added: “The new regime would be more flexible and would give the first-tier tribunal a much wider jurisdiction to deal with the whole gamut of disputes which can arise in enfranchisement claims.”
to take longer than the first inquiry, which took 16 months. Figures released by the Grenfell Inquiry show the second phase of the investigation into the disaster has unearthed 200,000 separate documents – 10 times the number analysed in the first stage. Phase two will be split into eight separate modules, with 21 companies granted “core participant”status along with more than 600 individuals. Relatives fear it could take Sir Martin Moore-Bick, the retired Court of Appeal judge who chairs
Enfranchisement process causes hostility, barrister claims
outmoded enfranchisement process – not the individuals involved – that leads to disputes. Instead what we need is scope for more negotiation, open dialogue and process-led interactions.” As one of the sector’s leading barristers, Nicola has worked on all aspects of landlord and tenant disputes and specialises in property litigation for both residential and commercial cases. She said that enfranchisement claims frequently became hostile because aspects of the legislation could trap the unwary. “If a tenant misses a deadline in the process, the right to an extended lease is lost and a new claim can’t be made for a further year. If the landlord misses a
creates an adversarial environment, whereas what we need is less of the ‘us v them’ mentality. “It’s the
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Property management firm's boost for RTM
R esidential property has expanded its Right to Manage (RTM) offering. The RTM initiative provides leaseholders with the right to take control of running their apartment building from their landlord. But to be successful, correct procedures must be followed. Bosses at Rendall & Rittner say that the move will mean they can offer advice to management company, Rendall & Rittner
Managing director Richard Daver added: “We are pleased to offer our services to leaseholders interested in this process and guide them through the procedure of Right to Manage. With over 30 years of property management experience our wealth of knowledge will help prospective clients understand what is involved in managing a building and the steps needed to begin the RTM process.”
more residents who are considering taking over the management of their building. Rendall & Rittner’s group head of legal Azmon Rankohi: “The Right to Manage process is ideal for residents who are considering taking over the management of their apartment building. Although the process of RTM is relatively straight forward,
A ffordable housing developer Pocket Living is in talks with potential partners over funding to kick-start an expansion outside of London. The home builder has built and sold hundreds of micro-flats for first-time buyers otherwise priced out of London’s property market. It has set its sights set on the commuter belt, including Oxford, Cambridge, Maidenhead and Winchester. Pocket Living has raised £51.4m in debt financing from Sadiq Khan, the London mayor, and his predecessor, Boris Johnson. A spokesman said: “Pocket Living is talking to the government and administrations on how its model can be replicated outside the capital. Nothing has yet been agreed.” The company’s portfolio of one- bedroom flats are sold with a 20pc discount on market rates. The Pocket Living eyes expansion
the qualifying rules and criteria can be complex.”
Airbnb develops internet check for customers
N ew technology that scours the internet to work out if someone is likely to trash holiday accommodation has been developed by Airbnb. The online rental marketplace firm has worked on the analysing software to check out social media accounts to calculate risk. The “trait analyser” software uses artificial intelligence to mark down people 'associated' with drugs or alcohol, hate websites, or sex work. It does this by R esidential block facilities company Future Group has added a heating division to its portfolio. Company bosses decided to launch Future Heating Solutions to meet the growing demand for fully compliant heating installations in the residential block sector. The new business is headed by Mark Georgiou, a qualified
scanning keywords, images and video footage across the internet linked to a potential customer to assess their trustworthiness. The programme will also assess their 'behavioural and personality traits' including 'conscientiousness and openness' alongside its usual credit and identity checks. An Airbnb reports states: “'While no screening system is perfect, globally we check hosts and guests against regulatory, terrorist, and sanction watchlists,”
apartments are only available to first- time buyers who live or work locally and who earn a household income less than £90,000. Facilities firm adds heating division
is a great fit with the rest of the Future team. “We are absolutely confident that Mark, with his extensive knowledge of heating technology and the property industry, will bring the exceptional levels of customer service and knowledge leadership that our client base has rightly come to expect from the Future Group.”
Willsdon said: “We’ve launched the company in response to block management clients who need specialist advice. Heating will be sitting alongside lighting, fire & life safety and security as the final piece of the facilities jigsaw.” He added: “We are delighted to welcome Mark on board. We believe he is the ideal person to head up the new company and
and accredited commercial and domestic combustion engineer with almost two decades of experience in providing services for some of the property sector’s leading names. Future Group director Jamie
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Specialist not standard
Blocks of Flats Insurance
Deacon is a specialist blocks of flats insurance broker.
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Call: 0808 149 9564 Email: [email protected] Or visit: www.deacon.co.uk/agents
Deacon is a trading name of Arthur J. Gallagher Insurance Brokers Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered Office: Spectrum Building, 7th Floor, 55 Blythswood Street, Glasgow, G2 7AT. Registered in Scotland. Company Number: SC108909
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