Landmark ruling made on rooftop phone masts in London

CTIL v L&Q ruling could have huge implications for future of rooftop phone masts

A Tribunal ruling has set an annual payment of £5000 for a rooftop phone mast in London.

The case of CTIL v L&Q, where landowners L&Q were represented by law firm Clarke Willmott LLP will have major implications for future telecoms agreements for rooftop sites.

The Tribunal made it clear that operators should pay for temporarily shifting its equipment to allow landlords to carry out essential repairs. This, in turn, would put the onus squarely on the telecoms operator.

Clark Willmott Partner Kary Withers commented: “This is the first time that market evidence of new code deals has been considered by a Tribunal and that is why a figure of £5,000 p.a as opposed to £1,000 at a previous Tribunal case involving a property in Islington, has been arrived at.

“The Tribunal also concluded that unrestricted sharing is incompatible with ensuring the least possible loss to landowners.”

Martin Rodger QC commented during the trial that “the notion that landowners should pay for lift and shifts is ludicrous, [the parties] are out of their minds if they thought the landowner should pay”.

The Tribunal considered the use of a rooftop through common parts is likely to involve the landowner. They reviewed market evidence and decided that deals that were negotiated before the commencement of the new code and therefore could not be seen as reliable.

The consideration ordered included an allowance for building maintenance and insurance of £1500, an allowance of £1,000 for managing access, and an allowance for the anticipated costs for upgrading and sharing with two other operators.

The Tribunal considered that willing parties negotiating a 10-year arrangement would be more likely to agree to an annual payment rather than a one-off fee.