£2000 LAW CASE

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 73, 18 December 1937, Page 7

£2000 LAW CASE

Purpose Was to Determiue Rent of 8/6 Cottage "FAIR BREAK"T0R TENANTS While he laboured in Chatham Naval dockyard, five Law Lords solemnly debated. whether 8g 6d a wepk rent waa excessive for Frederick Gregpry's fourroom cottage. Finally they agreed that it was. Costs of the case, which has been going on for two years, are estimated st £2,000 — more than Gregory's rent cvill amount to for many years. His victory will affeet the lives and tneomes of the inhabitants of 5,000,000 British homes and will mean a saving to dwellers in controlled houses iffocted by the Rent Act, of £7,000,OOQ a year. In the small cottage in Strood Kent itreet, filled with playing children, tvhere Mr. Gregory lives with his dark* haired wife and two daughters, he told the Daily Sketch. "I am glad we got the verdict, Not pnly for myself but for more than 50 of jny neighbours, who will be affeeted by the decision. The case has been going on for nearly two years. Of course, on my earnings of £2 16s a week I haven't the money to pay even a fraction of the legal costs. The case was taken up by the Rochester and District Tenants and Householders' Association. "I was paying 8s 6d a week rent for my four-roomed cottage, which incidentally includes a very small gardes behind, and the Association told me that this was excessive. They advised me to suspend payment until the excess amount which I was paying had been taken care of. " The case was carried from the County Court to the High -Court. Then .the landlords appealed to the House of Lords, but iirst of all they had to agree to pay part of the costs of the action whether they won or lost. "We have no animosity against the landlords," Mrs Gregory interjected. Behind the aetion is the young sehoolmaster seeretary of the Householders' Association, Mr Frederick Allen, of Rochester, who has voluntarily taken up the task of seeing that tenants of controlled houses receive 3 fair break. "We started this Association about three and a half years ago, ' ' he told the Daily Sketch. "And now we have 1,000 mcmbers in the district, They pay only ld. a month in dues, , "This ca?e arose out of '"the practice by landlords of collecting from tenants the Tates as well as the rent and paying legs to the Council in rate3 than the tenants would have to pay thejnselves. Their rebate was allowed as a collection fee," Ironically, Mr Gregory, because oi a reassessment of the district rates, U now paying a ld a week more in rent than he did formerly. This amount, however, is 3 s 6d a week less than he would have paid if tho HouSe of Lords decision had gone against him.