Southwark Crown Court found Brian Copsey, 60, guilty of fraud by abusing his position as Finance Chairman and Company Director back in April. Copsey was jailed for 8 years and disqualified for 12 years from being a Company Director.

Copsey was entrusted with the position of Finance Chairman and Director of two companies that were set up to manage the funds collected from tenants’of Bryanston Court in Westminster for Service Charge and Reserve Funds; and in turn Copsey controlled the bank accounts where these funds were held.

The board of Bryanston Court, Westminster involved the police when they found out a cheque for the sum of £1.8 million had bounced! Copsey was arrested and an investigation was undertaken revealing that over a two year period Copsey had made a number of bank transfers from the two accounts to him and a number of recipients including his wife.

It appears that the total amount taken amounted to £1,160,525.

The victims of Copsey’s act were neighbours and friends all living in the same block as him, some elderly and retired. It was also noted that some had to take out loans to pay for their contribution to the Service Charge and Reserve Fund.

It has been announced that Brandon Lewis has been promoted to Minister of State for Housing and Planning at the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), combining the positions previously held by Nick Boles (Planning Minister) and Kris Hopkins (Housing Minister).

Penny Mordaunt will be known as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at DCLG.

Eric Pickles will continue in his role as Secretary of State at DCLG and remains responsible for the overall strategic direction of DCLG which works with agencies and public bodies, including the Housing Ombudsman, the Planning Inspectorate, the Leasehold Advisory Service, the Homes & Communities Agency and the Building Regulations Advisory Committee and affordable housing, rented housing and the planning system.

In every Lease there are a number of obligations (or does and don’ts) that the flat owner is required to follow. This could include anything from when and how to pay the Service Charge to the actual usage of the flat itself.

In extreme cases where the flat owner does not fulfil the obligations set out in the Lease, legal action is highly likely resulting in the flat owner potentially losing their flat through the legal process called forfeiture.

As of 13th May the Leasehold Reform (Amendment) Act is now in force, meaning that a duly authorised person, such as a solicitor or someone with power of attorney can now sign any required notice on behalf of an owner.

This will make life a lot easier, as before this Act, any owner wishing to extend their lease or buy the freehold with a neighbour for example, was required to physically sign the required legal notices themselves.

Our new website has now gone live!

Finally the Government are getting involved in the Phillips and Francis court case.

We understand that the Government will provide evidence to the court stating Parliament’s original intentions when enacting the relevant legislation and the consequences by allowing the current ruling to stand.

Residents in apartments have a tendency to leave things in the communal areas, in particular hallways such as shoes and furniture. How often do you see residents in houses leaving their shoes, washing, bikes, prams, children toys and furniture on their front lawn for the public to see, let alone taking them?

Whilst communal areas are for the use residents; they are also a work place for contractors who keep the communal areas clean and tidy…. let alone visitors to the block, whether known or not. Read more

Not long for the long-awaited appeal in the case of Phillips v Francis, scheduled to commence on 14th May.

The earlier decision turned the industry standard practice on its head when carrying out major works. So we’ll all be ready to hear the decision and the impact it will have for the sector.

Ten Questions to Ask your Managing Agent

1.   Why am I paying a service/maintenance charge?

Your current management company should be able to explain this.

But just in case they can’t, a service/maintenance charge is a charge that you are liable to pay under the terms of your lease/deed. Your solicitor should have explained the terms of your lease/deed and the obligations relating to the property upon purchase.

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As of 1st January 2013 homeowners will be advised by any gas engineer that their gas boiler flue system is “at risk”, if a Gas Safe registered engineer is unable to inspect the flues especially if they are concealed and there isn’t an inspection hatch.

The reason behind this is to raise awareness of the potential dangers from certain types of flues and the risk of exposure to carbon monoxide (CO).

If you are not aware if this applies to you:

• Contact a Gas Safe registered engineer who last serviced your boiler who will advise you if your property is affected.
• If your boiler isn’t regularly serviced, it is advised that you arrange for a Gas Safe registered engineer to check your system out immediately.

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