I own a flat in a block managed by a right to manage company. I am not happy with how the building is being managed and I am not getting clear answers. What can I actually do, and in what order?
Leaseholders should normally begin by putting their concerns to the RTM directors in writing and requesting a clear response. Their next options will depend on whether they are members of the RTM company, what information they are seeking and how serious the alleged management failures are. Possible steps include exercising service-charge information rights, using company-member rights, requesting a general meeting, proposing an independent management review or, in serious cases, considering an application for a Tribunal-appointed manager. The correct procedure and evidence are important, and legal advice may be needed.
Concerns about a right to manage (RTM) company usually fall into recognisable groups, and the right response depends on which group you are in:
Disagreeing with a decision does not by itself prove mismanagement. Directors are allowed to make judgement calls that some members dislike, provided they act within the lease, the articles and their duties. Separating a preference from a genuine failure will save time and keeps your position credible.
Six roles are easy to confuse:
The practical consequence is that a managing agent normally takes instructions from the RTM company, not from an individual leaseholder. An agent can and should handle repair reports and ordinary resident enquiries, but it cannot usually give one leaseholder access to confidential company records without the RTM company's authority. See whether an individual leaseholder can contact the managing agent.
Owning a qualifying flat does not automatically make you a member of the RTM company. Membership normally follows a separate step, and it matters, because it affects rights relating to company meetings, voting, company information, appointing or removing directors, and requiring the directors to call a general meeting.
Check the company's articles of association and its register of members before relying on any company law right. Most RTM companies adopt the prescribed model articles made under the RTM Companies (Model Articles) (England) Regulations 2009, although you should read the version actually filed for your company. There is more detail in our answer on seeing an RTM company's register of members.
A calm, specific letter or email achieves far more than a long list of grievances. A good written approach:
Keep a copy of everything. If matters later escalate, the written trail is usually the most valuable evidence you have. Where directors do not reply at all, see what leaseholders can do if RTM directors refuse to respond.
Different documents sit under different rights, and asking through the wrong route is a common reason for a refusal:
No leaseholder has an unrestricted right to every RTM or managing agent document. Our answers on inspecting an RTM company's accounts and invoices and on inspecting service charge invoices explain the sequence.
An RTM board may decide, voluntarily, to commission an independent review of governance and decision making, service charge controls, budgets and expenditure, procurement and contractor management, insurance arrangements, repairs and compliance monitoring, or managing agent performance. Boards sometimes welcome this, because an outside view can settle a dispute that internal correspondence cannot.
An individual leaseholder does not automatically have a general right to require the RTM company to commission or pay for a wide-ranging independent audit. The company's approval will also usually be needed before its managing agent releases confidential company information to an external reviewer. See can a leaseholder demand an independent review.
If you are a member of the RTM company, company law may give you routes that a non-member does not have. At a high level, qualifying members may be able to:
None of this allows one leaseholder to appoint themselves as a director or to remove the board unilaterally. These are collective procedures with formal requirements, and they should be followed carefully.
Where the real problem is the performance of the agent rather than the directors, the cleanest remedy is often a change of agent. That is a decision for the RTM company, taken in accordance with the management agreement and its notice and termination provisions, the company's articles, and any board or member approval requirements.
Our answer on whether an RTM company can change managing agent sets out how boards usually approach it, and our guide to changing managing agent covers the handover.
Where serious management failures remain unresolved, a qualifying person may be able to apply to the First-tier Tribunal for the appointment of a manager under Part II of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987. That route can be available even where an RTM company currently manages the building.
It is not a shortcut. In practice:
Read more on Tribunal appointed management, on Section 22 preliminary notices, and on whether Section 24 can be used against an RTM company. If you are unsure which Section 22 applies to you, our answer on the two types of Section 22 notice explains the difference.
Take legal advice before you consider removing directors, serving a statutory notice, pursuing disputed company records, alleging breach of duty, applying to the Tribunal, seeking to recover costs, or formally challenging service charges. Take advice urgently where safety, insurance cover or the security of service charge funds is in question. Directors themselves may also want to read our answer on RTM and RMC director personal liability.
If your building is not yet under an RTM company and you are researching the process, see our guidance on Right to Manage.
This page provides general information about property management in England and is not legal advice. The appropriate steps will depend on the lease, the RTM company's articles, company membership, the available evidence and the circumstances of the building.
East Valley can review the operational management of an RTM or resident-controlled development, subject to access to the relevant records and authority from the company. We provide management and operational observations, not legal advice.
Request an Initial AssessmentThe right next step depends on your role in the building. The list below sets out what each group can usefully do when concerns are raised about how an RTM company is being run.
Treating disagreement as proof of mismanagement
Directors are entitled to make decisions that some members dislike. Focus on what was required and what was actually done.
Assuming that owning a flat makes you an RTM member
Membership is a separate step. Check the register of members before relying on company law rights.
Asking the managing agent for company records
The agent's client is the RTM company. Confidential company information normally needs board authority before release.
Jumping straight to a Tribunal application
A preliminary notice under section 22 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 is normally required, and evidence of a statutory ground is essential.
Mixing every complaint into one long letter
Separate, dated and evidenced points are far easier for a board to answer and far more useful if matters escalate.
Most questions on this topic are management questions rather than legal ones, and the two are worth separating. A managing agent can tell you how something works day to day and what it will cost. A solicitor tells you what your rights are and how a Tribunal is likely to view them.
East Valley Properties provides management expertise, not legal advice. Where a matter turns on the wording of your lease or on formal proceedings, we will say so and work alongside your solicitor.
The official material behind this guide. We summarise it in plain English rather than reproducing it.
The statutory basis for RTM companies and the management functions they acquire.
Right to request a summary of relevant costs.
Right to inspect the documents supporting that summary.
Part II, including the preliminary notice and the appointment of a manager.
Rights of inspection of the register of members, including the proper purpose test.
Members' power to require directors to call a general meeting.
The prescribed articles most English RTM companies adopt.
Current First-tier Tribunal forms, including appointment of manager applications.
We act as managing agent for RTM companies across Greater London and Essex, covering service charge accounting, compliance and contractor management on fixed fees.
Answered by Romain Maillard - Director, East Valley Properties
Romain manages residential blocks and estates for RTM companies, residents' management companies, share of freehold developments and freeholders across East London and Essex.
Published
This answer has been anonymised. Personal details, addresses and company names have been removed. Guidance is general and does not replace advice from a solicitor or surveyor on your specific block. East Valley Properties is a managing agent, not a firm of solicitors or legal advisers.
Whether you're an RTM Director, RMC Director, Freeholder or Leaseholder, our experienced block management team is here to help.
If your question could help other property owners, we may publish an anonymised version of the answer in our Knowledge Centre.
Book a free consultation with East Valley Properties to discuss your building, service charges, compliance or managing agent requirements.