A recent victory for residents of a Manchester block of flats may give fresh hopes of compensation for the thousands of leasehold flat owners whose buildings have been labelled as unsafe since the Grenfell disaster.
New Lawrence House
Five years ago, Fire chiefs deemed New Lawrence House (a five storey block in the Hulme area of the city) unsafe following an inspection requested in the wake of the Grenfell disaster.
Their findings included an untreated steel structure, missing balconies, a lack of fire breaks and faulty cladding. Residents were ordered to leave their homes and have been in a battle for compensation ever since.
Residents in Action
They began by attempting to sue the developer, but their actions were halted when the firm declared bankruptcy. They then successfully sued their insurer (East West Insurance, who inherited the policies from Zurich) before they also went under.
This forced the residents to turn to the Government’s Financial Services Compensation Scheme for help with all the legal bills who subsequently turned them down, stating that they didn’t qualify for their help. Undeterred, the residents decided to take their case to the High Court.
A Win for All Leaseholders
Thankfully, the High Court Judge has ruled in their favour, ordering the FSCS to pay an estimated £5million to the 25 residents for the legal bills they have faced.
This landmark victory will be a source of huge encouragement for the thousands of leaseholders stuck in unsafe buildings in the UK to pursue legal proceedings.
