Cases - Sutton (Hastoe) Housing Association v Williams
Record details
- Name
- Sutton (Hastoe) Housing Association v Williams
- Date
- (1988); (1988); (1988)
- Citation
- 16 EG 75; 1 EGLR 56; 20 HLR 321, CA
- Legislation
- Keywords
- Landlord and tenant – service charge – terms of lease – repair or improvement – lease not distinguishing between repairs and improvements – whether the works fell within the tenant’s covenants
- Summary
-
The tenant of a block of flats covenanted to pay a service charge, being a proportion of the costs of various matters including within the lessor's covenants as follows:
'5(1)(a)(i) maintaining, repairing, renewing and in all ways keeping in good condition the Block ...
5(1)(a)(viii) carrying out such works and providing such additional works and services as may be considered necessary by the lessor in its absolute discretion from time to time.'
The lease made reference to a Schedule of Condition and a Schedule of Repairs to the structure anticipated during the next 10 years that stated:
'External timber elements will need to be renewed during the next ten years. This includes windows, timber cladding to fascias and garage doors.'
Wet rot in the woodwork of windows had caused leaks and had required constant repairs. The housing association decided to replace the old single-glazed wooden windows with double-glazed uPVC windows.
The tenant appealed an earlier County Court judgment that did not distinguish between repairs and improvements. The County Court judge's finding was upheld that there was no need to, as the replacement of the windows, whether amounting to repair or including an element of improvement, was covered by the wording under section 5(1)(a) of the lease, whether under subsection (i) or (viii).
Although not disagreeing with the decision in Mullaney v Maybourne Grange, because of the terms of the lease the question of whether the work could be both repair and improvement did not arise.