A one-page note for directors, v1, 2026-09-18. Draft until the company and its client account exist; the principles are the profession's and will not change.
One account per building. Your service charge and reserve fund are paid into a client bank account opened in the name of your building, at a UK bank, held on trust for the leaseholders. It is not our money, it is not mixed with our money, and it is not mixed with any other building's money.
Interest. Interest earned on the account belongs to the building and is credited to the building.
Who can move it. Payments out are made by us under the agreement, against invoices or the budget the board has approved. Two people see every payment run. The board can ask for a bank statement at any time and gets one with every quarterly report.
Reconciled monthly. The account is reconciled to the ledger every month, and the reconciliation is kept. If a payment cannot be matched it is chased until it is, not written off.
If we go. On termination the balance is transferred to the incoming agent or the company within the period the profession's code sets, with closing accounts drawn to the handover date and reconciled to the bank.
Protection. Client money protection cover, which is a legal requirement for a managing agent, will be in place before we take on any building, and the certificate will be shown on our website and available to any board on request. Our terms and this note will name the scheme.
Never by email alone. We will never tell you or a resident about a change of bank details by email alone. Anyone who receives such a message should telephone the named manager before paying anything.
Related
Block management in Essex, block management in London, the handover checklist, the three letters, how we hold your money, the first ninety days. The free switching pack for Essex directors is at essexblockmanagement.co.uk. For a written quotation, the form takes two minutes.