Frequently Asked Questions

Your annual service charge is determined by the management agent and typically includes costs for maintenance, repairs, insurance, and general upkeep of the common areas in the building. It is calculated based on your flat's proportionate share of these total expenses, which is often outlined in the terms of your lease agreement; sometimes a fixed percentage, at other times a fair proportion (usually the square footage of the flat). The exact amount can vary yearly depending on the actual costs incurred and any anticipated major works. Typically the charges are demanded in advance, although some older leases may stipulate collection at the end of an accounting year.

There might be anticipated increases in service charges if there are planned major works, increased maintenance costs, or inflation-related adjustments. Significant upcoming expenses could include major repairs, refurbishments, or upgrades to common areas, such as roof repairs, lift refurbishments, or repairs to communal facilities. It's best to review the latest budget and accompanying documentation for specific details on any expected changes.

The Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 s42 stipulates that service charge money must be held in trust. This is a special bank account that separates the service charge money from the funds of that of the managing agent or landlord.

No, reserve fund contributions typically cannot be refunded as they are designated for future major repairs and maintenance to ensure the building remains in good condition. These funds are meant to cover anticipated costs and are usually non-refundable, even if you sell your flat. They help avoid large one-time charges for major works.

Schedules within a service charge budget are typically used to allocate expenses to particular areas of an estate. This breakdown helps ensure that costs are fairly distributed among the various areas and that leaseholders only pay for what they have access to. For example, leaseholders within a flat that has access to a car park, may have to contribute to the upkeep of the car park, but leaseholders within a flat on the same estate who do not have access to the car park would not contribute to the upkeep.

The managing agent oversees the maintenance of the building through a combination of regular inspections, scheduled maintenance by contractors such as cleaners and gardeners, and resident communication.

Bovellan has a 24/7 line 0203 835 5858 for reporting issues. In addition all of our blocks list the direct line for the designated property manager, their email address and telephone number. Out of hours, their number will divert to our on-call team.

The first step is identifying need. This is done at the strategic level through the preparation of “planned preventative maintenance” or PPM programme. This lists all the assets in the building, their condition and likely working life. The funds for this work are carefully collected through the budget. At the day-to-day level, engagement with the Landlord of the building, the residents, and other affected groups influences the exact timelines. Once it is agreed that works should commence, residents are formally consulted through the ‘section 20’ consultation procedure before any contractor is appointed.

At Bovellan, you’ll be aware of your named Property Manager. You can also call our office on 0203 831 5858 24/7, or email us at info@bovellan.co.uk and the Property Manager will respond Monday to Friday between 09:00 and 17:00.

We welcome suggestions and we are always seeking to improve. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with your Property Manager, or call our office on 0203 831 5858 or send an email to info@bovellan.co.uk

You can call our office on 0203 831 5858 24/7 and this will leave a message with our on call Property Manager. You can also call your Property Manager direct, whose number will diver to the on-call team. The response to the call will be instant or within a few minutes. The response to the issue will depend on the action needed. If there is a fire. Call the fire brigade. If you have witnessed or are aware of a crime. Call the Police. If there is an issue with the communal area – a lock is damaged, we can arrange an emergency locksmith. If there is a leak on a communal water supply, or tank we can arrange an emergency plumber. If the heating or hot water goes out on a communal boiler, we may attend straight away, or on the next working day.

Bovellan is guided by the regulations and rules set by our regulatory body the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, as well as legislation, which includes the section 20 process.

The reserve fund money is held in a client account with a bank, as few banks offer accounts specifically for this purpose the interest rates tend not to be competitive. The managing agent or landlord cannot invest the money as we are not investment advisers, and passing the funds to investment advisers would be costly and risky considering the relatively short-term period for holding the funds. The funds are therefore held in an interest bearing account.

The insurance policies in place for a building typically include buildings insurance and terrorism insurance. Buildings insurance covers the structure of the property, including walls, roofs, and communal areas, against risks such as fire, flood, and accidental damage. Terrorism insurance protects against damage caused by terrorist activities. The specific requirements for what should be insured are determined by the lease, which outlines the mandatory coverage needed to protect the property and its residents.

Leaseholders are not typically required to hold contents insurance, we are not aware of leases stipulating this. Neither are we insurance advisers, so whilst at a general level we can suggest it is prudent to obtain contents insurance, we are not qualified to recommend either way. You should always seek your own independent advice.

Bovellan does not take a commission for any insurance related activity. Bovellan may under its management agreement charge a fee for work done for services outside the standard services – for example – handling large claims.

Typically the excess is paid by the party that in the lease is listed as responsible for maintaining the insured peril. So for example, if there was an escape of water from a water pipe belonging to a particular flat owner, that caused damage requiring an insurance claim, the excess would be recharged to the party in whose lease it was the repairing responsibility to maintain the pipe. So in this example the flat owner whose pipe leaked should pay the excess. If the pipe is communally maintained, the service charge will pay the excess. Leases differ, so you should always contact Bovellan to check.

If you have damage to the fabric or fixtures in your flat, Bovellan will assist you in making a claim. Typically the claim will involve at least quotations on letter-headed paper, with photos and dimensions of the damaged area, as well as evidence of the cause of the damage and that it has been repaired.

Each building is different, but typically this involves raising a request with your Bovellan Property Manager in the first instance. Insurance claims vary depending on complexity, and could take anything from days to months.

As part of our obligations as a regulated firm, we ensure that all our buildings comply with regulations.

Fire safety is of paramount importance. You should familiarise yourself with the policy in place in your building. When new leaseholders move in to our building, we provide them with a leaseholder handbook that details the fire safety details. We encourage leaseholders who sublet on assured shorthold tenancies to pass this information on. This information complements the regular updates we provide and the information in the common area lobbies.

Alterations – leaseholders may be disappointed to learn that they are not free to do whatever they want in their flat. Freehold house owners are burdened by the covenants in their ownership deeds as well as planning rules. Leasehold flat owners have an additional administrative burden to overcome when wanting to make alterations. The lease will stipulate exactly what is required, but typically any connection or disconnection to communal services or plumbing, cutting, maiming, fitting to or removing fixtures attached to walls, changing flooring will require permission. If you are considering carrying out alterations contact Bovellan with your plans and we can explain the process to you. Service Charge Payments – the Lease stipulates when payment should be made. Leaseholders are not able to choose when they pay, and the consequences of failing to pay could be severe and ultimately lead to forfeiting the flat. In addition, the managing agent is contracted to manage the services, demand the service charge and issue a reminder. However, where your lease allows, the landlord is entitled to charge administration charges for escalatory steps required to recover service charges from you. It isn’t fair that all leaseholders should firstly subsidise a leaseholder who chooses not to pay and pay a share of the cost of chasing the payment.