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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think our neighbours are ridiculous for paying this and refuse to pay my "share"

999 replies

Hiphopapotamus4 · 16/05/2017 21:20

A house on our road came up for sale recently (its empty at the moment, was rented) and as you do, I had a nosey at the particulars on Right Move. In the description in says that there is a service charge of £500 per year. I thought this was odd as we pay no such charge and it's not a flat or leasehold or anything like that so I couldn't figure out what the charge was for.

I ran into another neighbour who made a comment about the price it was for sale for so I commented that I noticed it had a service charge and how odd that was. Neighbour gave me a funny look and said "yes, well we all pay the service charge" I said that we don't and have never been told anything about it or asked for payment. I asked her what it was for exactly and she didn't really know but kept saying "we all have to pay it".

Now, she has obviously been and spoken to some of the other neighbours about this and they are now annoyed that we don't pay when everyone else does. They want us to start paying it so that their share becomes less. However NOBODY knows what it is for, they all just pay it without questioning it. I said I wouldn't be paying anything unless they can tell me what it is for and what "service" I am receiving.

AIBU to think they have all been a bit foolish to pay so much money without questioning it and that they should stop paying it/find out what it's for rather than ask me to contribute!

To be clear, this is a fairly normal road with no communal areas and no "services" (other than the usual bin collections etc). Apparently the invoice just says "service charge" and does not specify exactly what service it is.

(I am currently the "bad neighbour" and need to make amends - may have to bribe the neighbourhood with homemade chocolate brownies then convince them to stage a mass refusal of payment and demand for refunds!)

OP posts:
Seeline · 17/05/2017 08:36

I can't believe people are just handing over £500 a year without knowing what it is for!!
Hopefully the invoice will at least link the payment to a Council department.
My bet is on an unadopted road - but don't know how OP has escaped the charge.

Palomb · 17/05/2017 08:39

Might be an acces charge if they have to drive over some communal land (i.e. over the verge) to get to their property. It's to pay for upkeepmof the pavement.

Could also be and access charge if they have rear access to their garden.

Original poster
Hiphopapotamus4 · 17/05/2017 08:39

I have an update!!!

(But still not a clear answer)

Next door showed me her invoice which looks similar to our council tax bills. It has the council logo etc at the top, then the neighbours name and address and then in the main part it just says
"Service Charge - 2017"
and has our postcode on the next line.
She also showed me her council tax bill and it is exactly the same as mine so it's not as though I'm paying this extra amount through my council tax.
I suggested that she phone the council and ask what it is but she "doesn't want to cause any bother".
Do you think they will talk to me if I call on her behalf?

She said that Roger over the road (the nosey neighbour) has plans to ask every house if they are paying this since he found out that we don't! I will go and speak to him later and see what he has found out.

I sense an uprising! (but I'm off to work now so will update later)

OP posts:
Joey7t8 · 17/05/2017 08:41

Sounds like a scam whereby the scammers have used the council logo to make it look official. I'd definitely phone the council and see if you can get a ref. number and bank account payable as well.

ShatnersWig · 17/05/2017 08:42

How can anyone blithely say they don't want to cause any bother by ringing the council to find out why they are paying a not inconsiderable sum of money when at least one other person in the road isn't? That's madness or they have more money than sense.

Roger, I am sure, will get to the bottom of this. Can you please speak to him soon, otherwise even more shameless placemarking will occur?

BumWad · 17/05/2017 08:43

Interesting!

ChrisPrattsFace · 17/05/2017 08:43

Exciting mystery. Place....marked.... Grin

Kennethwasmyfriend · 17/05/2017 08:43

Does the invoice request payment to the regular council account though, or to Sid in Malaga?

UserThenLotsOfNumbers · 17/05/2017 08:43

Must be a scam. A genuine charge would have been made clear when you bought the house. Definitely inform the council and report to police if council not heard of this.

6demandingchildren · 17/05/2017 08:46

No you can't go to work, you have to stay home and solve this mystery like Scooby-doo

NeedMoreSleepOrSugar · 17/05/2017 08:46

Blatant place mark! Love a mystery!

TalkingBoutMoney · 17/05/2017 08:47

Are the bank account details the same as the normal council tax bill?

MargaretCavendish · 17/05/2017 08:47

Yes, what does it say about how to pay? I've never lived somewhere where you can't pay council tax online through the website, for instance, and I'd be interested to know if this 'extra' invoice has such options.

I think your neighbour might be realising she's been scammed and is embarrassed, hence 'not wanting to make a fuss'.

burdog · 17/05/2017 08:47

I don't understand why the neighbour 'doesn't want to cause any bother' by ringing the council to find out what the flip she's paying for... but she's perfectly happy with causing OP bother by insisting that OP pay it too.

diddl · 17/05/2017 08:48

"Are the bank account details the same as the normal council tax bill?"

You beat me to it!

Seeline · 17/05/2017 08:48

By what means do the residents pay this charge?
Can they direct debit it? If so does the form provide details?
If they pay by cheque, where do they send it/make it out to?

It all sounds very strange to me. I still can't believe no-one has queried it before! How long have they been paying it for?

SaskiaRembrandtWasFramed · 17/05/2017 08:48

Shameless place marking.

onalongsabbatical · 17/05/2017 08:51

burdog different neighbour, you're obviously not keeping up!
(Satisfactorily placemarked).

MistyMeena · 17/05/2017 08:53

Ooh intriguing.

If it's been listed on Right Move with the service charge mentioned that would indicate that it's legitimate, wouldn't it? Surely the agent wouldn't add that to the details just on the vendor's say-so? I think I would phone the agent and ask. At 9am. Grin

JustGettingStarted · 17/05/2017 08:57

The listing agent probably just repeats what the seller tells them.

PaleAzureofSummer · 17/05/2017 08:58

I don't understand why the neighbour 'doesn't want to cause any bother' by ringing the council to find out what the flip she's paying for... but she's perfectly happy with causing OP bother by insisting that OP pay it too.
Just what i was thinking.

AragornsManlyStubble · 17/05/2017 08:59

I'm going going to pop myself down........errrrr...........here!

Most peculiar!!!

MargaretCavendish · 17/05/2017 09:00

I think it's incredibly likely that the agent has added it just because the vendor says so - why would they go out of their way to check? It's not such an unusual thing for there to be a service charge (though this is a hefty one). I think if OP rings the estate agent they'll tell her that they'll have to check with her neighbour to find out what the service charge covers.

BlahBlahBlahEtc · 17/05/2017 09:00

This whole thing is rather fishy!

libbyliz83 · 17/05/2017 09:00

I'm another one who would phone the agent pretending to be interested.
I'd also dig out any old paperwork you got when (if) you bought the house and look through that for clues. When I bought my 1930s house we had all documents dating back to when it was originally built and the people who had bought/sold it over the years, it was very interesting.