London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

Senior MP demands answers for leaseholders

Senior MP demands answers for leaseholders

MP Clive Betts has written to the government to ask why new guidance designed to help about 500,000 leaseholders sell or remortgage their flats is not being followed.

It was issued by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) in March.

It is supposed to help surveyors decide which tower blocks need extra fire safety checks.

But although mortgage providers were consulted on the guidance, Money Box has found some lenders are ignoring it.

The extra checks are called an Exterior Wall System form, or EWS1, and were introduced in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire in which 72 people died.

That form is supposed to provide assurance for buyers, sellers and, crucially, mortgage providers about whether or not a flat is safe to buy, sell, or lend against, depending on whether it has flammable cladding, vertically stacked balconies or other issues.

But Money Box listener Jie Shen, who is trying to provide for his retirement, is selling a flat which has neither of those problems.

He says three separate mortgage providers have turned down his prospective buyer because Jie's building doesn't have an EWS1 form - even though the RICS guidance says it doesn't need one.

"I feel like I'm trapped into this situation. I can't move on with my life, I'm just locked into this and I don't know how to resolve this," he says.

"I think the mortgage lenders should follow the advice from RICS and shouldn't insist on an EWS1 form [for a building] that does not contain flammable cladding.

"I just don't understand why the mortgage provider insists on this - it's just bureaucracy."

'System is a complete failure'


Another complication for Jie, and many others like him, is that getting an EWS1 form is not in his power, even if he wanted to get one.

He is a leaseholder and the decision to pay for the survey needed to get the form lies entirely with the freeholder who owns his building.

In Jie's case, the management company of his building, representing the freeholder, has quoted the RICS guidance to show the building should not require an EWS1 form, leaving Jie utterly stuck.

But Jie's buyer has been turned down by three mortgage providers exactly because he doesn't have an EWS1 form. And so it goes round and round, with Jie left in limbo.

It's hearing about cases like Jie's that has made Mr Betts act.

Writing to the Secretary of State for Housing, Robert Jenrick, Mr Betts, while recognising that the EWS1 is "a process led by industry", has asked two key questions on behalf of the committee:

*  The ways in which the government is supporting the implementation of the new guidance from RICS

*  The actions that the government plans to take in the event that mortgage lenders continue to insist that EWS1 forms are obtained for buildings that do not meet RICS criteria.

He has requested answers by the end of May.

Mr Betts has also asked people who find themselves in the same position as Jie - when the RICS guidance shows their tower block doesn't need an EWS1, but when lenders are insisting on one - to email the committee at "hclgcom@parliament.uk".

Speaking to Money Box after hearing about Jie's case, Mr Betts said: "The system was set up with the lending industry and the surveying industry to work together to give reassurance to lenders. That's its whole purpose.

"So if it isn't giving reassurance to lenders to lend on buildings which the system says don't need a certificate... then the system is a complete failure and it needs taking up with both RICS and the lenders, so it doesn't leave people stranded in homes that they can't sell and can't remortgage."

UK Finance, which represents nearly 300 banks, building societies and mortgage providers, says it's supportive of the guidance but it's down to individual lenders whether or not they implement it, based on their own risk appetite.

It also told Money Box that while lenders instruct valuers to complete property valuations, it's the valuers who determine whether or not EWS1 forms are required.

The Department for Housing, Communities and Local Government told Money Box it wanted to encourage "a sensible, proportionate approach to risk and for lenders to accept alternative forms of assurance", adding that it was investing £5bn to help protect leaseholders from the cost of replacing unsafe cladding on their homes.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
×