Category: Uncategorized
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Health & Safety or Common Sense?
If you have ever looked at some of the questions on a method statement and risk assessment, most of them are common sense. They force the person writing the report to think about and anticipate accidents and to act before something tragic happens. It should be a no brainer in so many cases, but still it…
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Reinvigorating Commonhold
Further to previous blogs regarding leasehold reforms mentioned in the White Paper, the government is committed to promote fairness and transparency for the growing number of leaseholders. One of the reforms on the table is labelled 4.38 and reads as such: “We will consider further reforms through the consultation to improve consumer choice and fairness…
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Southwark Council feeling the heat
As previously mentioned in our blog about the importance of fire safety, Southwark Council pleaded guilty at a hearing in February to all four counts brought by the London Fire Brigade. They were guilty of: Failure to carry out risk assessments Failure to take precautions to prevent fire spreading and protect escape means Failure…
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Continuing Housing Crisis
If you are frustrated by the slow pace of the building of affordable homes, there is a consultation you can become involved in to make your voice heard. A white paper on this subject has been followed up by consultation on views about planning and affordable housing policies intended to speed up the development of…
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Increase to claims against the Financial Services Compensation Scheme
Service charge monies held in trust are protected by the FSCS and guidance on claims was put out in April 2009 by the Communities and Local Government Dept. It said: “Whilst any claim would be dependent on the circumstances and evidence available at the time of the claim, the FSCS would generally expect to treat the…
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Practices still giving us all a bad name
Insurance commissions with Landlords are still skimming 40-50% of premiums. When is this going to be made illegal? Ground rent abuses with builders of flats increasing the starting levels of ground rent and frequency of reviews. Leasehold houses with unfair practices still happening of selling houses as leasehold instead of freehold and leases being drafted…
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Should health & safety be politically correct?
Political correctness has long been the reason we all feel unable to say things which could be construed in an offensive way. But what if we use political correctness with health and safety as the excuse to promote something as legislative correctness? Two recent examples of a landlord and an insurer trying to use health and…
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Fire Safety Too Important to Ignore
Southwark Council are in the dock with 22 charges brought against them by the London fire brigade after a fire in 2009 at Lakanal House caused the death of 6 people 3 women and 3 children. Is it ever acceptable to take a casual approach to fire health and safety when so many lives can…
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Gender Pay Reporting Nightmare?
The technical and practical hurdles companies face in calculating their gender pay gap is about to become a reality when the report on the topic becomes mandatory for many businesses. ACAS has teamed up with the Government Equalities Office to publish the guidance and all employers with a head count of 250 or more will have…
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Apprenticeships are the way to go!
At last count, we are told there are 1 million young people out of work in the United Kingdom and that despite this figure we are still accepting low skilled workers from other countries to fill some of our country’s vacancies. At 2 Rivers Property Management , this seems like madness and begs the question…
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