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• About service charges

  Service charges cover the cost of maintenance and repair work. The cost is shared fairly between all of the flats in the block (as shown in your lease). 

  If you are a tenant, your rent already includes an amount to cover maintenance and repairs. Your service charges do not pay for services provided to council tenants.

  Depending on your property type, your service charge may cover:

  • Maintenance of shared gardens or landscaped areas
  • Cleaning of shared areas and rubbish chutes
  • Lighting in shared areas 
  • Lift maintenance and replacement (if no longer economical to repair). Part of your service charge may go into a ‘sinking fund’ to save for future replacement
  • Heating in shared areas 
  • Day-to-day repairs and maintenance 
  • Ground rent 
  • Buildings insurance  
• About ground rent

  Ground rent is a yearly fee for renting the land your property is on. It is fixed in your lease at £10 for a 125-year lease and £20 for a 99-year lease. It will stay the same for the entire lease period. The full payment is due on 25 March each year, but you have 60 days from the date on the bill to pay it.

• About buildings insurance

  Arranging cover

  We arrange buildings insurance for the property you live in, as required by the terms of your lease. You don’t need to arrange this yourself. We will send you a bill each year, along with a summary of the policy. However, we recommend getting contents insurance to protect your belongings.

  What the policy covers

  The policy covers damage to the structure of your home (inside or outside) caused by events such as a fire, storm, water leaks, or vandalism. For example, if water from the flat above damages your home, you can claim for repairs under this policy. It does not cover general maintenance or wear and tear. 

  If shared parts of the building are vandalised, we will claim on the insurance and won’t charge you for repairs. Please report vandalism to the police and get a crime reference number, as we’ll need it for the claim.

  Contact us

  To make a claim or check your cover, contact our Insurance team:

  • Email: insurance@dacorum.gov.uk
  • Telephone: 01442 228320 or 228150 
• Paying your bills

  When you receive the bill for your service charge, you will have 60 days (from the date of the bill) to pay. 

  Ways to pay

  • Telephone: Call 01442 228315 (Customer Accounts) or 08453 706070 (24 hours) 
  • Online: Through our make a payment page
  • In person: Visit our customer service centres (by cheque, debit card or credit card, or postal order) 
  • Post: Send a cheque or postal order only
  • Direct Debit: Contact Customer Accounts (email customer.accounts@dacorum.gov.uk or call 01442 228315)
  • At a bank, post office or Payzone point.

  Make sure you have your bill with you when paying, as you will need the details from it. 

  Help if you have a large bill

  If you have a large bill (fo example, for redecorating shared areas or major work) you can spread the cost with an interest-free payment plan. Contact Customer Accounts (see details above) to set this up. You must pay by Direct Debit or standing order. 

• Financial help

  If you need help to pay your service charge bill, you may be able to borrow more from your current mortgage lender. This would usually mean adding the amount to your existing mortgage. Your lender would then adjust your repayments and might extend your mortgage term (for example, from 25 to 30 years) to keep payments manageable.

  If you're interested in this option, contact your lender. Most will give you an idea of whether they’d approve the loan before you apply.

• Limits on how much we can charge

  If you bought your flat through the Right to Buy scheme, we gave you an offer notice (Section 125 of the Housing Act 1985). This notice included estimates for any major work or improvements we planned to do. We cannot charge you more than these estimates, plus inflation, for the first five years after the April following your purchase.

  After the five-year period, we can charge you your share of the cost of any work we do.

  If you buy a property that was sold under Right to Buy less than five years ago, the Section 125 notice still applies - even if you weren’t the first owner.

• Claiming benefit to pay your service charge

  There is no state benefit to help pay your service charges. However, if you are sick, unemployed or disabled, you may be eligible for financial support through the Government’s benefit system. You can apply to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), or get help from Citizens Advice.

  If you are already claiming Income Support, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance or Pension Credit, you might get help with the cost of major building work. Check with the DWP or Citizens Advice to see if you qualify. Even if you receive support, you will still need to pay your service charges. 

• Applying for a reduction in charges for major repair work or improvements

  If your service charges for repairs, maintenance, or improvements exceed £10,000 over five years, you can apply to have them reduced to £10,000 under the Social Landlords Discretionary Reduction of Service Charge (England) Directions 1997.

  However, this does not apply if your property’s value has increased by more than £10,000 due to the work. We will review your circumstances and check that you live in the property as your main home before making a decision.

  Please note: In most cases, this work will increase your property’s value, giving you a direct financial benefit.

• If you do not pay your service charges

  If you have a genuine dispute about a service or repair carried out by us, we will put that part of your bill on hold. You won’t have to pay the disputed amount until your leasehold officer investigates your case and responds. However, you must still pay all other charges that are not in dispute. If we decide you still need to pay, you must pay the outstanding amount in full.

  Before withholding payment, seek independent legal advice. If you do not pay, we can take legal action to revoke your lease, meaning we could take back the property. We always aim to resolve issues before this stage, but you should be aware that it is legally possible.

  If you do not pay your bill before the due date (and you haven’t arranged to pay by instalments and your invoice isn't on hold due to a dispute), we will:

  1. Send a reminder letter
  2. Send a final notice if no payment is received within 10 days.
  3. Contact your mortgage lender if you still don’t pay, as non-payment breaks the terms of your lease.

  If you have disputed the bill and a court or arbitration panel rules that you must pay, we will also notify your mortgage lender. We can ask the lender to settle the debt on your behalf by adding the amount to your existing mortgage.

  If the debt remains unpaid, we will start legal proceedings through the county court. Once a court summons is issued, we will charge interest on what you owe. If the court rules that you have broken the conditions of your lease, you will also have to pay our legal costs.

  If you are struggling to pay your service charges, please contact us as soon as possible. We want to help you avoid legal action.