Government must act on the financial and safety nightmare for leaseholders with cladding

At the OnLondon website, Caroline writes about the plight of leaseholders in blocks with dangerous flammable cladding, and the need for the Government to act.

Many freeholders are dragging their feet when it comes to replacing cladding, leaving leaseholders to cover the exorbitant costs of temporary safety measures. Thousands of leaseholders are also being left at the peril of the External Wall Fire Review (EWS1) form.

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I’ve heard from leaseholders in London who live in buildings less than 18 metres tall, which the government has stated do not require an EWS1, that lenders are nonetheless requiring one before leaseholders can sell or re-mortgage, leaving thousands trapped in their homes.

Many leaseholders are also finding that conditions in their lease mean they need to foot the bill for the EWS1 process, which can run into tens of thousands of pounds.

And as if that wasn’t enough, some Londoners in touch with me have been told an EWS1 will take anywhere between 18 months to a decade to be completed. This is largely due to a significant shortage of qualified professionals with the appropriate professional indemnity cover to undertake the necessary surveying work. This in turn has led to some leaseholders in the capital being scammed by fraudulent individuals providing fake EWS1 reports.

None of this is good enough.

Read the full article at OnLondon.