Removal of access to the drive & garage of my house

[Hundall]

Hi,

The garage of my house is leasehold (999 year lease), with the freehold owned by the flat above the garage. There are 2 other garages under the flat, 1 belonging to the flat & the other to my neighbour.

i’ve lived in the property since it was built in 2004 & have never had any contact with the owners of the flat which has always been rented out. So i have never paid any contribution to the buildings insurance of the garage. The deeds state that it is the responsibility of the flat owner to ensure the building (flat & garages) has insurance & they are entitled to ask for a contribution to this cost, split in proportion to square footage of the garage as proportion of building.

The flat has recently been sold for the 1st time since 2004 & yesterday I received a letter from the owner of the flat stating that ‘I am in breach of the lease as I’ve not paid any monies due for the contribution to insurance since the beginning of the lease. And that I risk forfeiting the lease if I don’t respond immediately & that this would mean that I no longer have access to the garage or drive’. The drive is in front of the garage & I own the freehold of the drive.

I’m looking for advice on how I should respond. I don’t know exactly what they want but I assume it’s likely to be a contribution to insurance going back to 2004. I’m happy to make a contribution going forward. But should I pay going back to 2004? Feel uneasy about making any payment without seeing any proof of what I’m paying for or whether I need to.

Really appreciate advice on where I stand legally as not knowing is very stressful.

Many Thanks

[atticus]

What does your lease say about contributing to insurance?

I think that in respect of money payable under a lease, the limitation period within which a claim must be brought is 12 years from the date on which the cause of action arose. This may provide an answer to about the first 6 years of claim.

[Hundall]

Just to make clear, the flat came into the market about 1 month ago & within the last week became ‘Sold STC’. The letter has come from the person selling the flat who has owned it since 2004. Sorry for not making this clear.

[Hundall]

Thanks Atticus. The lease states that it is the responsibility of the freeholder to insure the whole building. And there’s a formula to work out how much of this I have to pay ‘on demand’ from the lessor. It also says that I have to pay the cost of the lessor of supplying a copy of any policy of insurance, if I request this.

though you think I am liable for a contribution for the last 12 years of insurance?

[atticus]

have there been previous demands?

[Hundall]

no previous demands or any kind of communication at all. I've no idea who the owners are, the property has been let since it was bought.

[Hundall]

Hi,

Thanks for your earlier replies Atticus, and a quick update on where this is.

So the owner of the flat has asked for £456, which is a 13.3% share of the total cost (£3428) of insurance since 2004. The 13.3% share is specified in the leasehold agreement. I've asked for proof of buildings insurance and been sent a spreadsheet with a number against each year going back to 2014. I've been sent bank account details to transfer the money to the flat owner.

From what you said, I think there's a limitation period meaning this back payment can only go back 12 years?

I'd like to see something more concrete to prove that the insurance has been taken out and the cost of this - is this reasonable? And what if they say they haven't kept this documentation?

Transferring the money directly to the flat owner seems very dodgy. I don't even know for sure that they are who they say they are. If i do make a payment, how should this be done? And what should i ask for in return as proof of payment?

Thanks.