Melissa Briggs of CARLEX Responds to Peverel Administration

Melissa Briggs, leader of the CarlEX campaign has responded to the announcement yesterday that Peverel have been placed in adminstration. 

Speaking to News on the Block, Melissa Briggs said:

"This is hopefully a great day for leaseholders everywhere in the UK and may now prove that the Peverel Group of companies has not been very well managed. However, we do not know who will take over Peverel - will it be out of the frying pan into the fire?

"It is now a very good time to seek to form a Right to Manage company and we will be endeavouring to help many more blocks escape Peverel's clutches as soon as we possibly can.  Accreditations through LKP (www.leaseholdknowledge.com) are gaining momentum as Managing Agents realise just how much of the market place is now well and truly up for grabs.  As Peverel were in charge of 66% of the retirement market as well as a large chunk of the non-retired sector, this means that a huge number of more ethical Managing Agents will now benefit substantially. 

"At the same time, hopefully the government will realise what has been happening to leaseholders, and will move to bring in legislation to stop it happening again. The RTM legislation needs the anomaly sorted whereby mixed developments of cottages and flats cannot achieve RTM, and Managing Agents need to know exactly what will happen to them if they are proved to overcharge for services and/or mismanage their contingency funds." 

The CarlEX campaign (www.carlex.org.uk) has gathered pace in 2011, and received significant media coverage in the trade and national press including:

The Guardian: Leasehold: a battle to fight and win
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/blog/2011/feb/19/leasehold-stiffer-regulation

The Independent: Elderly Lead Fight Against Freehold Fees
http://www.independent.co.uk/money/spend-save/elderly-lead-fight-against-freehold-fees-2096080.html

Mail on Sunday: CCTV threats...over some torn wallpaper
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/property/article-1363878/CCTV-threats-elderly-residents-retirement-development-landlords--torn-wallpaper.html

Mail on Sunday: Now Squeezed Pensioners See Value of Their Flats Plummet
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/property/article-1361464/Now-squeezed-pensioners-value-