FREEHOLDERS of a Thamesmead housing association have been appearing in court for refusing to pay "unjust" maintenance charges.

Gallions Housing Association owns and manages much of the area’s housing stock and began levying estate charges on freeholders in 2009.

But a group of residents has refused to pay, including an Austen Close couple landed with a bill of more than £800 for the maintenance of the area surrounding the terraced house they purchased under the Right to Buy scheme in 1999.

Paul and Carol Clark, both 51, cannot afford to pay the levy on top of council tax according to their son Joe, 25, who now lives in Abbey Wood but grew up in his parents’ home after he was born in 1987.

The data analyst for a financial services firm said: "It’s obscene that the residents of Thamesmead have to pay twice.

"It’s just plain wrong and it needs to be exposed.

"The whole point of this is that it is unjust.

"My parents have never been to court and always paid their taxes and worked all their lives."

Warehouse supervisor Paul and wife Carol, who works full time in Wilkinson, appeared on February 15 for a preliminary hearing at Woolwich County Court when a date for the claim to be heard was set for May 20.

Mr Clark said: "It's fundamentally wrong and just totally out of order really.

"We are at our wits' end with it."

Estate charges cover areas such as sewers, roads, lighting, lakes, canals, green spaces and parks but many tenants claim bills very arbitrarily year-to-year and Gallions does not provide adequate proof how money is spent.

Erith and Thamesmead MP Teresa Pearce said: "This is a very thorny issue.

"Gallions are within their legal rights to make these charges but there is dispute between Gallions and residents about whether the charges are accurately levied.

"They are only allowed to charge what is actually spent and it's hard to see that residents are getting value for money.

"They pay full council tax and estate and/or service charges on top but I doubt anyone would agree that they get double the services.
 

"In other places where estate charges are levied they are affluent private estates. 

"I don’t know of another place with as much deprivation as Thamesmead where residents are charged twice.

"It may be legal but it's not moral."

Gallions response

A spokesman for Gallions said: "Gallions provides a number of key services to residents of Thamesmead with no extra funding from government bodies.

"We therefore need to make a charge to pay for these services.

"There are freeholders in Thamesmead who benefit from these services and who as part of their purchase signed a covenant agreeing to pay their share towards them.

"Although they pay council tax and may assume that this covers the upkeep of all parks and other public areas in Thamesmead, this is not the case."