Pensioners living in sheltered housing fear they will become homeless after home service charges soar.
Three residents of the Dingle Grange flat block in Liverpool 8’s Dingle neighborhood are angrily worried after being told that the service charge they have to pay with their rent has suddenly more than doubled in some cases. said there is.
The block is owned and managed by public housing provider Taurus, but he said the main reason for the skyrocketing costs is related to rising utility bills affecting the entire country.
But for pensioners Billy Bell, Billy Sage, and Eddie Cunningham, this is of little consolation.
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Sage, 70, said: She can’t pay the money, the letters, and she feels like she’ll be kicked out, homeless, or have extra moving costs.
“I came back here after working abroad and all over the UK because I wanted to have my time and be comfortable back here. I’m not looking for luxury, I just want to live.” But the anxiety this is causing me is terrible.
“I don’t really understand what this is being paid for. One of them is maintenance fee, but there is no manager around. The lawn is very expensive and I am being charged for maintenance of the garden. .
“All we want is a little shelter and safety and some pressure relief. We don’t want to deal with all this at this age f I can’t pay for it. I may have to leave.”
Bell, 77, said: I have to live and I’ll be fine, but now that this is happening, what I have will be gone next year.”
Mr Cunningham, 67, said rising prices would make it impossible to afford basic necessities. He added: move. “
Dingle Grange tenants are backed by local councilor Steve Mumby, who urged Taurus to change course.
“Taurus needs to reconsider. We recognize the financial pressures they will face, but raising service fees for bond pensioners by about 50% at this time is unacceptable. At least they It should. And fuel and food prices are likely to fall, or at least stabilize, in the near future.
“As a city, we need to come together and look after each other, and social housing providers have a responsibility to do that too. Find out what other housing associations in the city are doing and see if they can simply It is necessary not to put off the expenses of pensioners.
“In Dingle, we have worked with community anchors such as Wheel Meet Again, Florrie and Riverside Learning and Education Centers to help pensioners get help with fuel costs. It has helped me access the Household Assistance Fund and I would be a little shocked if the Housing Association were doing the opposite while we were doing it.”
Paul Warburton, Taurus Group Housing Director, said: We apologize to customers who felt that we were not well informed, but we have communicated with residents as quickly as the situation allows.
“The main increase in service charges is due to rising utility and energy costs impacting the country as a whole. and have not passed on the actual full amount to the facility tenant.
“The billed figure remains 20% lower than the rate quoted by the energy supplier. We hope this will continue to support government support and help protect individual tenants from the worst impacts of the increase. The utility market is currently very volatile and we plan to conduct semi-annual reviews so that we can adjust our rates as needed.
“At Dingle Grange, along with other schemes, after a year of consultation with residents, we began tailoring services and rates for all Taurus customers. Services varied by geographic region, with various regions paying full or partial costs for residents, while others were not charged and paid nothing for those costs.
“To make this more fair for everyone, we have standardized our service fees so that everyone is treated the same no matter where they live. began introducing several new fees for communal services that were not: Maintenance, Fire Safety, Door Entry have been phased in for over 5 years for existing residents, this being the first year, Residents will be charged 20% of the actual cost of the service.
“In response to these increases, we have provided support from our Tenant Support Scheme with the Taurus Foundation to conduct benefits assessments for those struggling due to the current cost of living crisis and rising energy costs. bottom.”
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