107Reduction of service charges for hardship

107 Reduction of service charges for hardship

107 Reduction of service charges for hardship

(1) The Minister may by order direct the following if the Minister is satisfied it is reasonable to do so to avoid hardship for a person—

(a) that a relevant person specified in the order is to be taken to be an eligible pensioner for the purposes of this division,

(b) that an eligible pensioner is taken to be, or to have been for a specified period, the person solely liable for the payment of a service charge on the land on which the eligible pensioner’s dwelling is located.

(2) The Minister must not make an order under subsection (1)(b) unless the Minister reasonably believes that the eligible pensioner, whether or not liable for the payment of the service charge—

(a) has paid the whole of a service charge for a period that justifies the making of the order, or

(b) is likely to pay the whole of the service charge in circumstances that justify the making of the order.

(3) An order under this section takes effect on—

(a) the date specified in the order, or

(b) if no date is specified in the order—the date the order is made.

(4) A reference in this section to a relevant person or eligible pensioner includes a class of relevant persons or eligible pensioners.

(5) In this section—

relevant person means a person who—

(a) occupies a dwelling as the person’s sole or principal residence together with an eligible pensioner for whom the dwelling is also a sole or principal residence, and

(b) is jointly liable with the eligible pensioner, whether or not with other persons, for a service charge for the land on which the dwelling is located, and

(c) is not otherwise entitled to a reduction of the service charge under this division.