The service charge invoice landed in the summer. over £9,000 for a share of the block's contingency reserve. The block's total reserve fund was already substantial. The demand looked disproportionate against the actual expected works.
Section 20 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 requires proper consultation before major works. Section 27A of the same Act allows a leaseholder to apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) for a determination on whether a service charge is reasonable. Section 21B of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 sets out the specific summary-of-rights notice that must accompany a service charge demand.
Fightingback drafted the response letter, the tribunal application under Section 27A, and the chronology of correspondence. The application was accepted. The freeholder is now required to justify the amount.
The outcome is not settled - tribunal cases take months. But the freeholder has moved from confident demand to defensive answer. That's the leverage the tenant needed.