Furious residents of an Arbroath housing estate are refusing to pay £168 bills for fixing paths around their homes.
The residents of Rowan Path on the Westway had been informed by the Hillcrest Housing Association Ltd communal paths were to be resurfaced.
They have now been billed for the work.
One resident, who did not wish to be named, said: “Hillcrest got (the) letter to do the job a few weeks ago.
“Then this letter arrived which was a shock to me and the other 299 residents who are being asked to pay for the tarring.
“Hillcrest sent out letters telling us when the work would start and how long it might take; that was fine, but there was no mention of us having to foot the bill.
“As you can imagine the 300 are up in arms and no one is going to pay the money which is approximately £168 which they want next month.
“Some residents are now taking legal advice.”
Residents have spoken about creating a petition and have met with Richard Moore, Arbroath West and Lunan Liberal Democrat councillor, to discuss their concerns.
After the meeting Mr Moore said: “I am surprised they have not been advised of this until months after the event.
“I promised them I would contact Hillcrest and try to find out if there was any way we could mediate so it does not impact heavily on the residents.”
In the letter to residents, Bruce Leslie, Hillcrest contracts manager, said: “We appreciated this is a significant cost but we did feel it necessary to do.
“We propose to allocate these costs between all 300 owners within the Timmergreen development and this represents an owner’s share of approximately £168.
“Our intention is to include this amount in the annual statement you receive from us in July each year.”
A Hillcrest spokesman said: “Earlier this year we employed a company to complete essential maintenance works throughout our Timmergreen estate in Arbroath.
“This work involved the complete re-surfacing of the footpaths and was deemed essential following a survey conducted by a structural engineer.
“Unfortunately on this occasion we failed to inform owners of the works and would like to take this opportunity to apologise for this breakdown in communication.
“We are in the process of reviewing of our decision regarding the charges, which will include seeking additional advice on the legal position, and will write to owners confirming the outcomes as soon as possible.”
