LANDLORDS' LEGAL COSTS AND SERVICE CHARGES

EDM number 792 in 1997-98, proposed by Barry Gardiner on 13/02/1998.

That this House notes that unscrupulous landlords have sought to recover legal costs from their tenants, even when they have lost the court case, through the very service charge bills, the inflated nature of which was the source of the tenants' original grievance; further notes that the size of such legal costs has been used as a means of deterring tenants from taking action against landlords for the lack of service provision or poor quality thereof; recalls that the Housing Act 1996 provides for cases to be transferred from county court to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal where costs cannot be awarded against tenants; regretfully notes that the provisions of the commencement order of the Act have the effect of preventing such a transfer where proceedings considering service charge abuses were already underway on 1 September 1997, thus failing to provide many tenants with the remedy intended; and calls on the Government to examine how such a right to transfer may be incorporated into any forthcoming legislation in this area.

This motion has been signed by a total of 40 MPs.