I stay on this fairly newish estate in Inverurie, there's 78 houses in this estate and theres a couple of bits of 'communal ground'.

 

There's a weegie company tasked with looking after these communal areas, it's written into the deeds, but in the 6 or 7 years since they've started charging for the upkeep their prices have risen 100%. Up 10% this last year! I've read through the deeds as best i can (i'm an offshore worker nae a legal jargon decipherererer) and what it says is that "charges shall not be permitted to increase for that year in the rate of inflation as measured by the UK Index of Basic Materials and Fuels as published in the Financial Times, London".

 

So with that info i emailed them, adding a photo of said page in title deeds and added a link to 'the rate of inflation as measured by the UK Index of Basic Materials and Fuels'. They ignored me so i cancelled the direct debit. They sent a letter saying to pay it pronto and added on a 10% admin fee, the fucking arseholes! So i phoned them and was told to wait while their management looked into it. I'm currently still waiting.

 

Obviously i'm nae best pleased with this and i've just spoken to a legal team member at Which? magazine who told me my best bet was to speak to the The Leasehold Advisory Service but turns out they only deal with England and Wales. Spoke to the Shire council and they're not interested as it's a private development....

 

Apparently if 75% of the house holders in this development got together we could vote them out sorta thing but of the 78 houses a few are leased for rent and there's quite a high turnover with sales, so it would just be a right pain in the arse.

 

Where do you go from there? Keep paying these robbing fucking weegies cos it's easiest and no one wants to help?! Obviously paying for proper legal advise would defeat the purpose of complaining about having to pay nearly £300 a year.

 

If anyone has any advice i'd love to hear it. Cheers.

Move to Spain or Hungary. Invest in shares in Saunier boiler company. Its the future...

Write again. Be a pain in the arse to them. Say this: -

 

I wrote to you on xxx

You ignored me.

I telephoned you on xxx.

You said you would look into it.

You ignored me.

I cancelled the direct debit on xxx

 

* just basically lay out the facts. You don't need to repeat your key point. You already made it in the original e-mail.

 

I have no desire to stop paying you and have never failed to meet my obligations.

I simply asked you a civil question, one that you ignored. Twice.

This is not the response of a professional organisation.

If you want my money, please answer my question. My admin fee is much higher than £xx so I'm not paying yours.

 

Yours etc.

 

Ha ha, cheers for the advice Ten Caat and Rocket.

 

I'd have moved overseas years ago if the Mrs would've agreed to it but obviously she wouldn't. Plus, the Dons don't play overseas so good reason to stay.

 

Some good stuff there Rocket, patiently waiting for their management to tell me why i'm wrong to question their annual increases.

 

£300 a year for what would have just been the councils job before they thought up a new scam?

Bastards.

 

This brexit crap has pushed up all my bills of course but I am still £70 a month for the building community charge.

This covers all repairs to the building including roof etc.

Money laid aside to pay for major refurbishment.

All cleaning done in the courtyard and stairs etc.

All communal electricity for lighting.

Door entry system, recently upgraded.

Bins sorted, put out, taken in, cleaned, pavement washed down outside the building.

Rubbish collected Monday, Wednesday and Friday EVERY week, including Christmas day.

All local taxes ( there's nae rates)

Insurance to cover any damage to the flat due to leaks from roof etc. ( sore point)

A wifie's wages for sorting everything out ( wifie's are better at sorting out tradesmen when things need doing)

 

 

 

 

 

Diznae cover me for my faulty boiler though 

Sorry I can't answer your question redz but I moved into my flat when this development was made 12 years ago.  Kirkwood homes (who built it) were responsible for upkeep of the communal grass, bin areas etc.... all of a sudden the guys who cut the grass stopped and no one knew why.

 

Turns out it was in the deeds that they were only responsible for the upkeep for 4 years.  No one really knew what was going on.  The grass was about waist high by the time we managed to get it sorted out.

 

Luckily enough the guy that lived above me was kind enough to organise it and (nearly) all of the flats agreed to pay subs every year for a local company to do the work and that's the way it has been since.

 

Maybe worth buying your weegies out but with 78 odd houses you would need someone to take charge and who has the time to keep tabs on it.  Most folk would realise that it needs doing and you could probably save a load of money getting someone local to do it but you always get the awkward ones who don't like being told what to do.

Jobby in the post. The answer to all legal issues.

Jobby in the post. The answer to all legal issues.

 

I've always wondered, can they trace that? You'd have to question anyone that wanted to search around a jobby right enough

A jobby is perfectly traceable contains plenty DNA to positively ID a suspect

A jobby is perfectly traceable contains plenty DNA to positively ID a suspect

 

Exactly. It needs to be traceable, that's how you make your point.

Nah, you just need someone else to shite in a box for you, then send that.

 

I'm sure you could return the favour, everyone has someone they would like to send a box of shite to.

Nah, you just need someone else to shite in a box for you, then send that.

 

I'm sure you could return the favour, everyone has someone they would like to send a box of shite to.

 

A sort of toldie version of Strangers on a Train? 

Once you turn 50 in Scotland you are actively encouraged to send samples of your shite to an address in Dundee

Shit in a box. Fabulous suggestion.

 

I recommend replacing the top of the box with clear plastic so that they can see it on receipt.

 

We may even want all postal workers to see it too although perhaps it should be wrapped?

 

That's the real choice to be made.

 

Got to contain a note within to tempt them to open it and inhale the smell.

 

"You're shit" is too obvious a note. I suggest something random and thought-scrambling.

 

Perhaps like: -

 

"There is always waste. There will always be flowers".

 

Or maybe: -

 

"Spare parts don't have a home until there is a vacancy".