Cults’ crusading retirees celebrate success

Campaigning retirees from Dunmail Manor in Cults, Aberdeen, recently celebrated the end of their seven-year legal battle to oust their former factors and finally regain control of their retirement development.

The residents appointed a new property manager in November 2005, because they were very unhappy with their previous factor, which actually owned several of the Manor's common areas including the House Manager's flat, store cupboards, garages and guest rooms.

They were able to consider ousting their factors under the Titles (Scotland) Act 2003. The factors had had perpetuity of the contract prior to this Act, regardless of the service provided.

The resident's ordeal finally ended this week when a settlement was reached under which a son of one of them purchased the common areas and will now rent them back at an acceptable rate and enable free and full access to all facilities.

However, this fight didn't come cheap - the son of a former owner, Bill Hogg, confirmed that the residents' legal fees were upwards of £250,000.

Bill said: "Today is a day to celebrate. We're all happy with the new factors and are trying to put this difficult time behind us. The financial burden, the stress and the anxiety the various legal procedures placed upon residents were huge. We were advised at one stage to take our case to the Supreme Court in London, but we just couldn't spend further tens of thousands of pounds on legal fees."

A legal battle ensued in 2005 that took the residents to the Land Tribunal, where their right to replace their previous factor was upheld. However, the factor then appealed and the residents surprisingly lost their case at the Court of Session in 2009, despite legislation seemingly being in their favour.

Since the new factor took over Dunmail Manor, improvements have been made, with a new entry warden call system, communal fire alarm and major roof repairs being carried out. The residents now also get full accounts, a separate bank account for their funds and have regular property management meetings.

Age Scotland spokesman Callum Chomczuk said: "The residents of Dunmail Manor are to be congratulated for not giving up their fight. What happened here is unacceptable, but thankfully the Property Factors (Scotland) Act 2011 should ensure that no other older person, or indeed anyone living in a communal development, has to go through such a long, drawn-out appeal process and that there is now a swift resolution to all disputes of this nature."