From 28 June 2022, the Building Safety Act gave financial protections to leaseholders in buildings of at least 11 metres, or 5 storeys, with historical safety defects.
The protections can prevent a landlord from passing on to leaseholders via the service charge the cost of putting right these defects.
The protections apply to buildings containing at least two flats that were built, or converted, in the last 30 years prior to 28 June 2022.
What you will have to pay
Your level of protection depends on your status, and you can check if you will have to pay to fix safety problems with GOV.UK.
If you have a qualifying lease you are protected from all costs to do with unsafe cladding, and there is a cap for non-cladding costs, or depending on the value of your lease and the landlord’s net worth, you may not have to pay for them at all.If the landlord was responsible for the defect – for example, they were the developer or associated with the developer – then they cannot recover the cost of any cladding or non-cladding remediation costs via the service charge. This is the case even if you do not have a qualifying lease.
What landlords have to disclose
Landlords must provide a completed landlord certificate when they want to pass part of the remediation cost on to you through the service charge.
The certificate confirms that the landlord was not responsible for the defect and shows their net worth.
What leaseholders have to disclose
Your landlord can ask you to confirm that you are a qualifying leaseholder. They can send a notice requiring you to complete a leaseholder deed of certificate, showing whether you held a qualifying lease on the 14 February 2022.
Your landlord must ask you to complete a leaseholder deed of certificate if they are aware of a relevant defect in the building, or if they become aware that you are selling your property.
The wording of the law is not totally clear, but it appears that a leaseholder can also submit a leaseholder deed of certificate themselves, at any time.
More information you might find useful
- Do I qualify for protection from paying to fix my building’s safety defects?
- How am I protected by the Building Safety Act?
- What is the Building Safety Fund?
- What is a leaseholder deed of certificate and how do I get one?
- When must a landlord provide a landlord’s certificate?
- More Frequently Asked Questions on Fire safety
Still not found the answer?
Contact LEASE to have your enquiry dealt with by one of our experienced advisers.
