A CORPORATE landlord may have to repay millions of pounds in rent to Lewisham tower block residents after letting out the flats without a licence.
Lewisham Council has sent legal letters to residents of Legal & General’s Bale & Anchor complex, comprising the tower blocks Bale House and Anchor House, telling them they may be eligible for rent repayments.
One tenant estimated Legal & General may end up with a bill of more than £15million if they are also fined by the council.
Residents say the landlord’s failure to license the flats is the tip of the iceberg, complaining that the blocks have been beset with problems since opening.
One tenant, who is now claiming her rent back from Legal & General, told us: “It’s disgusting. What they’re doing is criminal and I want them to be held to account.
“When I moved in in November my balcony door had a humongous gap in it and didn’t close properly. It was letting the cold air in which meant it was freezing in the flat over winter.
“The managing agent said it would be fixed by December. But nothing happened. For six months I lived with that broken door, exposed to the elements. I was paying £1,820 a month to live in the cold.
“I contacted Lewisham Council and they issued Bale & Anchor with a category 1 hazard improvement notice.
“I wondered how the flat got a licence with that sort of hazard and then the council told me it didn’t have one.
“Because it’s not licensed I’m eligible for rent repayments. We’ve all now received letters from Lewisham Council saying we can apply for rent repayment orders.
“You can claim up to 24 months of rent back. I’m hoping to get every penny of my rent back.
“The rent for my one-bed flat is the lowest amount as the two and three beds are more expensive.
“However for numbers’ sake, if everyone was paying £1,820 and claimed for the past 12 months, that’s up to £21,840 per flat.
“That amount times the 300-ish flats in the building is just over £6.5million. And that’s the very lowest amount as bigger flats have higher rent.
“Plus Lewisham can fine them up to £30k per flat for not having a licence – which their letter implies they are going to – so again, that times 300 is up to £9million in fines alone.”
The tenant, whose health conditions were worsened by her exposure to the cold weather, told the Lewisham Letter that residents were also forced to use communal showers when the hot water stopped for several days in Anchor House earlier this year.
She said: “The landlord refused to provide temporary accommodation, instead forcing all 300+ residents to share a communal shower.”
The resident, who lives in Anchor House, added that they also regularly experience complete water outages in the flats.
She shared videos with the Lewisham Letter showing no water coming out of the taps in her bathroom and kitchen despite being turned on.
The tenant added that her balcony door was finally fixed on April 25 – the day before the improvement notice deadline – although other residents are still experiencing problems.
In its letter to residents, Lewisham Council said: “Your landlord should have had a selective licence in place when Lewisham Council introduced its Selective Licence Scheme on 1st July 2024.
“Renting a property without the required licence in place is an offence.”
Private landlords in Lewisham require a selective licence, which ensures properties meet certain standards.
Responding to our story, a spokesman for Lewisham Council told the Lewisham Letter: “This matter forms part of an ongoing investigation and, as such, we are unable to comment further at this stage.
“Any decision on a Rent Repayment Order is a matter for the courts.
“The council takes reports of landlords failing to meet their legal responsibilities very seriously and will always investigate concerns where there is evidence that regulations may have been breached.”
A spokesman for Legal & General added: “L&G’s property managers, Urbanbubble, who are delegated responsibility for various property operations including obtaining licences, have been engaging with Lewisham since 2024, when the new licencing requirements were introduced.
“This is an administrative licensing matter, selective license applications for all homes in the development are pending.
“Urbanbubble will continue to work constructively with Lewisham Council, and we will respond appropriately through the relevant processes to any individual enquiries.”