Loads of solicitors have guides to the process – where I live we got 24 out of 27 flats to become RTM members, and even though we had to get a barrister to look at some aspects of our claim, the total cost (legal fees) was about £550 per flat. We’ll easily recoup that.

There are also companies that will actually do the RTM claim for you, in return for them being awarded the management at the end. It removes your choice, and I’m very sceptical about the low fees they seem to offer. Get an independent solicitor to manage the process for you.

Our new management company is a firm of chartered surveyors. RICS has much MUCH stricter rules (this is just one example) about looking after client’s money. Good luck and don’t give up. And even if your freeholder contests your RTM claim, don’t give up, pay the extra to get your case looked at by a “direct access” barrister. If your claim looks legally sound, the barrister will write up your case quoting the relavan law and case law, and you apply to the RPTS for a LVT – if it’s a simple case you’ll be given adate within about 8 weeks.

Moral of the story: just don’t give up! Good luck

However, the problem is that it’s not that straightforward to replace Solitaire with another company or to exercise the “right to manage”. At the end costs may not be saved and it brings a lot of hassle – and Solitaire knows it. I’ve spent a few hours trying to figure out how best the property management could be changed and there doesn’t seem to be an easy way. Solitaire is so obviously playing on this fact that it’s disgusting, but I can’t realistically see that enough people can be seriously bothered in a community in order to change the setup.

If anyone finds a good solution or a good property management company, let me know.
Else, I will setup one and take it from there. Anyone knows a good property lawyer? I’m myself a surveyor and thinking about changing jobs anyway.

Regards, Lilla

hire solicitors, go to LVT or county court, ignore anything andy says he is just here to stall court & LVT actions.

I promised to get back to you following your original posting.

The Regional Property Manager responsible for your development has been in touch and confirmed that the contractor he appointed completed the remedial works to resolve these problems on the 11th November.

If you still have any outstanding issues that you would like me to put in front of the Solitaire team please feel free to contact me directly via andy.solitairepm@peverel.co.uk.

Many thanks,

Andy

Solitaire Online Feedback Manager

I thought I would respond to some of the points you have raised in your posting. I have posted earlier this month about how Solitaire were contacting customers to let them know of the changes that are taking place as part of our commitment to keep customers fully informed.

Over the past few weeks a letter from our Managing Director (Operations) has been sent to all Solitaire customers informing them of a number of important changes. The last batch was released to the Royal Mail on Monday. A copy of this letter was posted first on this site in early October and I have also posted it on a separate thread.

It lets people know of our new dedicated customer website “Your Property Online” which enables residents to access development specific information 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. A postcard explaining the registration process for this online facility was sent with the letter explaining how residents can register for this service by visiting http://www.solitairepm.co.uk. Hundreds of customers have already registered for this service that is provided at no extra cost so we know the letters have been arriving with customers despite the postal problems.

The letter also informs residents of the Solitaire Careline “Out of Hours” service, which has been put in place to provide emergency maintenance cover for all Solitaire managed developments across the country. It also states that the cost of this new service is less than £5 per property owner per year.

The closure of the Solitaire Barnet office is explained within the letter and confirms that all Customer Services 08450 345 790 (lo-call), email and web address contacts remain unchanged. The Solitaire website http://www.solitairepm.co.uk will have the new Luton address details shown from Monday 2nd November.

We are confident that by introducing these new systems that it will enable us to deliver further improvements to our customer service standards.

Nirmal if you or anybody has any further questions relating to any of the changes that have been made, then please feel free to email me directly andy.solitairepm@peverel.co.uk

Thanks

Andy

Solitaire Online Feedback Manager

I will acknowledge that your involvement with various problems on numerous developments up & down the country does seem to be having an effect, and that things are finally getting done. This includes the development I live on in Cheltenham.

But it must be a major source of annoyance & embarrassment within Peverel that it takes your involvement – and, frankly, your kicking of backsides – to actually get things to happen. It’s obviously keeping you fully occupied, but if things worked properly in the first place, your position shouldn’t need to even exist…??? You shouldn’t need to have to chase Property Managers – they should respond directly to queries received from residents in developments they manage (or are supposed to manage…). It shouldn’t take pressure from yourself to get a response issued from the appropriate PM. But this seems to be the case in many examples, even 1 year after Peverel took Solitaire over, and started with the improvements so lauded by yourself.

Yes, things have improved. To a degree. But there is still much scope for further improvement – surely you & your superiors realise this? But will you acknowledge it publicly…???