Remus joins coalition to ask government for a multibillion-pound fund to replace cladding
Posted Monday, February 24, 2020
The cladding crisis is not going to disappear without serious intervention. We've joined forces with other leaders within the property sector to ask the government to step up!
As a large participant in the managing agent sector, the Fexco Property Services group fully acknowledges the scale of the cladding issue currently affecting the property industry. As a group, with all of the in-house resources required, we have a planned cladding programme in place across our portfolios. This internal resource, combined with our external advisers is presently assisting our clients to get the best result for our end customers.
We are fully aware that in certain circumstances, it is unfortunate that the cost of remediation may have to fall to some of these customers. The first priority has to be the safety of the residents but the consequences of remediation are undoubtedly having a severe impact on the financial and mental well-being of those people affected, whether they have to foot the entire bill or not. We know this, and in a society that promotes homeownership, it simply does not feel right or just.
To add to these clouds, as an industry we are grappling with severe limitations in resources that are affecting the process and speed of getting things done, plus a lack of professional advisers who can assist quickly enough due to concerns over professional indemnity insurance or a lack of suitably qualified operators. Combined with varying restrictions being imposed from home lenders and building insurers (who are also struggling to find practical solutions) you have a situation that could take many years to unravel with far-reaching implications.
We regularly consult with industry bodies, competitors, resident groups and other specialists across the property sector and it is apparent that the scale of the problem is far wider than anyone could have anticipated and certainly vastly beyond the scope of the initial ACM only fund put forward by government post-Grenfell. On that basis, we stand with our industry colleagues to call on the Chancellor to review available funding to deal with this crisis. It is impacting many thousands of homeowners up and down the country that desperately need help now.
As mentioned in this article (The Times) "Leaseholders, property managers and freeholders have formed a coalition to ask for a multibillion-pound government fund to replace cladding." We're proud to be a part of this coalition.
Niall McGann
CEO
Fexco Property Services
