Following up the LKP story of Hanover losing £500,000 over the SmartSource Water scandal, it now emerges that Housing 21 lost £250,000.
Inside Housing, the newspaper for social housing providers, says SmartSource Water was like a “pyramid scheme” which has left several housing associations among creditors facing millions of pounds of combined losses.
Two further housing associations and some care homes also had deals with the bill-management company, which offered to negotiate with water companies and pay on their customers’ behalf.
Smartsource Water guaranteed 8.3% reductions in water bills and no price rises for four years. However, a winding-up order was issued to the company at the end of September last year after it failed to pay its clients’ water bills.
In a letter to residents last month, Hanover chief executive Dame Clare Tickell revealed that the social landlord had lost £500,000 as an unsecured creditor.
As far back as March, Dame Clare was warning that media might take up the issue, which LKP did in the course of discussing issues at Leonard Hackett House, in Bournemouth. More here
Housing and Care 21 confirmed that it was also left exposed by as much as £250,000.
“We only used [Smartsource Water] for nine months and then stopped paying as we became aware that there was a problem,” says Housing & Care 21.
Administrators for Smartsource Water estimate that the company owes around £5 million to its former customers.
Both Bruce Moore, the former CEO of Hanover, and Tony Tench, former head of Hanover retirement, have denied that they took the decision to sign up with SmartSource Water.
But Moore has said that as he was “CE at the time and hence accept ultimate responsibility for a poor decision”.
Both Moore and Tench have move to Housing and Care 21.
Related posts:
Housing associations furious at government’s 10-year repair-free offer to new shared owners
Housing and Care 21: We’ve made a mess at Ashfield, so manage the site yourselves
OFT leasehold management inquiry includes housing associations and council properties – and will report in September
Attack on OFT over exit fees
Pete Redfern: Stop pontificating about the housing crisis and sort out the ground rent scandal of Taylor Wimpey’s own making
This shows how gullible the Managing Agents are and how they can use the residents money to make money and keep it?
The Managing Agents are aware that only certain developments check the Invoice Files which are presented as: MATTER OF FACT CORRECT?
The lack of communications from Area Managers and Regional Managers has since 1999/2000 been anything but transparent and open, as JE now claims?
I have this year, looked at all our Expense’s Files, dating back from 2006.
In the Expense’s Files, I found invoices for items that were for the following:-
1. other developments,
2. bills left by sacked House Manager
3. insurance claims not made and charged to the Service Charge
The following were charged under the items 1,2,3
1. Relief Managers Pay £143.44
2. Phone Bills £1,260 plus £200 (not refunded)
2. Cost of Plants/Pots/Planters £2,500 (refunded)
3. Replacement WC £327.37
3. Replacement Carpets £375
2. Loss of signal for TV £117.60
2. Call out for TV repairs £93.60
2 Loss of TV signal £125.76
3. Fit 6 hanging baskets £79.30
1. Asbestos Survey £125.00
1. Light Bulbs for a club house we do not have £66.00
We also paid for:
Risk Assessment’s for small trees
Roof Surveys from ground level
Fire Risk Assessments
Don’t forget the Commissions paid for Insurance Cover for both Kingsborough and Oval who both receive commission on the Building Premium and then Oval receive commission on the Terrorism Cover???
We have noted the ways the Managing Agents make money from Insurance:-
A. Over Insure which means more Commissions?
B. Suppress Claim, refuse to claim, informing that they have and being refused?
C. Increase Excess, and then place claim in Storm and Water Damage for a leak?
We understand that as the period, 6 months from April 1st each year i.e. October this is the busy period as our Area manager has up to 33 developments to arrange Budget Meetings and decide how little information we residents should be given?