Johnson’s Journey No 5
INFORMATION
It would appear that even though the New Legislation was brought into force on 1st October 2006, four years on a great many park home owners have still NOT been issued with a copy from their respective park owners, inclusive of quite a number of those who are members of the BH&HPA and NPHC. It is bad enough that home owners have had to suffer for so long via their park owners carrying out unilateral Pitch Fee Reviews and foisting onto them any figures of any amount that their tiny brain cells could muster up, in the sure and certain knowledge that their advisers? would come up with the effervescent response that their clients were allowed to carry out this action simply because the 1983 Act never depicted who, if anyone, was allowed to conduct the Review. Never was such an action dispelled simply because the legal eagles forgot one tiny matter in their haste to satisfy their masters. They completely forgot about the Second Schedule providing the answer below.
It is a great shame for them that most couldn’t read the English language in the proper Second Schedule in their own documents, that the pitch fee had been reviewed and that the owner and occupier had agreed to the increase. What bothers me is how these upright paragons of virtue came to the conclusion that they had agreed to something to which the home owner was NOT a party to and thus was never able to agree?? Or did their legal servants come up with a miracle cure that no-one else knew about???
Moving on four years from the birth of the new Implied Terms, we now hear of park owners refusing their residents the legal right to have their own copy of these Terms, by stating that they know the law so the home owner doesn’t need a copy. How arrogant can some people be?. They are also refusing their residents their legal right to have their home refurbished unless they sign a form (which was pushed through the back door and is not legally binding) and only then will he give them permission to have the home refurbished. This form has nothing whatsoever to do with the 1983 Act of Parliament, it is just a scam to show the power they hold over you. It is NOT, and never has been. done for the benefit of the home owners, as they well know. Oh! And refurbishment companies, watch out for those park owners who demand 10% of what you will receive from the job or you will not be allowed onto the park again.
Now let’s move onto something else. What does your park owner NOT want you to know???
1. How about the fact that he cannot send you a letter any longer telling you that your pitch fee will be increased from such and such a date and then put it up.
Why?? Because the new legislation took account of the way in which home owners were being manipulated by these owners and so transferred the review from the Express Terms into the Implied Terms, and the review is covered by clauses 16 to 20 inclusive. That’s why. He also has to show reasons why the increase is over and above the RPI, and the only way he can is by showing all (genuine) bills and/or invoices to prove his figures
2. Your park owner no longer has the right to carry out improvement works on the park without discussing with you, the residents, in the first instance, and he has to prove that the works he wants to carry out on the park IS for your benefit and NOT just his. (Check the serial numbers if there is more than one company doing the improvement works). If they run concurrently then beware, and don‘t agree to pay a penny until you are happy that the invoices and bills are genuine.
3. If your park has been subject to remedial works through breach of the Site Licence and Conditions and the local authority has issued a letter instructing him to get it done, then he has to do it but now, he is NOT in a position to charge the residents for that work because he would be in serious trouble.
4. Do you know, or are you aware, that now a park owner HAS to respond within 28 days providing you with an excuse for refusing the buyer of your home residency on his park, failing to respond in that period of time (in writing only) means you can go over his head and apply to the court and obtain permission approving the sale and the buyer to take up residency .
5. Did you know that now, under clause 10 (1)(2)(3) & (4), if your home has to be moved for the purposes of carrying out emergency works on the pitch, to a plot elsewhere on the park, not only has the other plot to be broadly comparable to your existing plot, but that if you wish to move back to your own plot, then the park owner is legally obliged to carry out your wishes under penalty for failing to do so. A tip- before you are moved, take photos of your own plot, and that of the one you have been moved to. This could cause problems for the park owner if he does anything untoward with either plot.
6. Under Clauses 12 to 14, of the new legislation, the park owner is only allowed to enter the pitch but NOT the home..
Clause 12: Under the new legislation, the owner shall be entitled to enter the pitch without prior notice between the hours of 9.00am and 6.00pm -
(a) to deliver written communications, including post and notices, to the occupier; and
(b) to read any meter for gas, electricity, water, sewage or any other services supplied by
the owner to the occupier.
Clause 13: The owner may enter the pitch to carry out essential repair or emergency works on giving as much notice to the occupier (whether in writing or otherwise) as is reasonably practicable in the circumstances.
Clause 14: Unless the occupier has agreed otherwise, the owner may enter the pitch for a reason other than the one specified in clause 12 and 13 above, only if he has given the occupier at least 14 clear days written notice of the date, time, and reason for his visit.
Clause 15: The rights conferred by clauses 12 to 14 above do NOT extend to the mobile home.
Note:- Any number of park owners, including those outside membership of the two trade organisations, are trying to use Clause 14 in particular, as a pathetic attempt to force park home owners into accepting copies of Survey/Inspection reports without having had the home owners permission to do this. Under no circumstances must you accept a copy of any survey or Inspection report affecting your own home. It is an act that was thought up by one of their legal advisers. No park owner is legally allowed to have an inspection carried out behind your back.
In order to Survey/Inspect a park home, the person responsible for this action must physically check all the exterior of the home by poking the construction with a screwdriver or some other pointed implement into the woodwork, ie; checking for any damp areas, he must also inspect under the home and the roof for any structural defect of roofing, and this being so, these actions would clearly indicate interfering with the actual home itself and thus is therefore unacceptable.
Should he have a Survey/Inspection carried out against your wishes, then he is clearly acting in breach of Clause/Paragraph 14 of the Implied Terms (New Legislation 1st October 2006) despite what any of a number of legal advisors may state.
Let’s find another scam: I would think that most park home owners have the old BH&HPA formatted Agreement and if so, then the Express Term Clause 3(e) should be in it. If that is so, then you will know that it states that you are legally obliged by your Agreement, to ensure that your home is kept up to the required standards so that it does NOT become detriment to all the other homes on the park. This means that you are to maintain that standard via maintenance and general upkeep of the home. And this also being so, I would venture to suggest that this would no doubt include any/all refurbishment work in order to keep that standard. Would this be a fair assumption???
Bearing in mind the above comments, I now move to Clause 21 (c) & (d) in the new legislation where it states that the occupier shall
(c) keep the mobile home in a sound state of repair;
(d) Maintain:-
(i) the outside of the mobile home, and;
(ii) the pitch, including all fences and outbuildings belonging to, or enjoyed with, it and the mobile home, in a clean and tidy condition; and………
Clause 23: again the new legislation very clearly states:- THE OWNER SHALL NOT DO, OR CAUSE TO BE DONE ANYTHING WHICH MAY ADVERSELY AFFECT THE ABILITY OF THE OCCUPIER TO PERFORM HIS OBLIGATIONS UNDER CLAUSE 21(c) and (d) ABOVE.
The Final Act:- We have now arrived in the departure lounge of Clause 28 of the 29 New Implied Terms.
For all those who thought that we would remain quiet about such issues so as to cause the other side no more harassment. You were wrong. Park Home Owners WILL get the rights which legally belong to them. No matter how long it takes we will continue to make not only present park home owners, but prospective park home buyers also, aware of the trap they can, and will, fall into if they purchase a park home.
Clause 28: You are legally entitled to form a democratic Residents Association, and to enrol with any of the National Home Owners’ representative organisations. And your park owner can do nothing about it unless he wants to break the law. The requirements are as follows:-
1. It is an association representing the occupiers of mobile homes on the park.
2. At least 50% of the residents are members
3. It is independent of the owner (as if you would want him interfering at every meeting) and any agent or employee of his.
4. Membership is open to all occupiers who OWN their mobile home.
5. It maintains a list of Members and is open to public together with the Rules and Constitution.
6. It has a Chair, Secretary and Treasurer. Who are elected by and from the membership.
7. With the exception of administrative decisions taken by those mentioned in 6. above, acting in their official capacity, all other decisions are taken by normal voting procedures but only the first named home owner on the Agreement can cast a vote.
8. The owner must acknowledge, in writing, to the secretary that the association is a qualifying Residents Association, but if he refuses to, it makes no difference to you because you can approach the court and it will make an order to the effect that your association is recognised.
Even if a park owner refuses to show any recognition, he still has to abide by the all content of the New Implied Terms and failure to do so, renders him liable to court action for breaking the law, and regardless of whether he likes it or not, he still has to produce documentation in order to justify any financial demands he makes from the home owners. If he again refuses, then you don’t pay him a penny until he does.
This information sheet has only covered 11 (Eleven) clauses under the new Implied Terms which you are legally entitled to have a copy of, so it is up to you to demand a copy from your park owner, however if you cannot obtain one from him, then either write to me, or phone me on the number below and I will run off a copy for you, I would need to cover my costs for this work plus the cost of posting it to you. Hopefully £2.50p should be adequate to cover it all. The new 2006 Implied Terms are yours as is your legal right. DEMAND A COPY AND DON’T LET THEM FOB YOU OFF WITH LIES.
Bernard J Johnson. (Dip Crim)
(Vice President) PHRAA
Tel: 01225 783799
Email: 
