A BED-RIDDEN 91-year-old widow has been forced to remortgage for further £16,000 to pay a service bill demand from Thanet council bill.

Disabled Dorothy Hacking, who now owns her former council flat in Harbour Towers, Ramsgate, is deaf, partially sighted and has a broken back.

The poorly pensioner, who is currently in Thanet hospital, was "panic-stricken" by the huge bill for external cladding work at the flats.

She said: "I was petrified that if I did not pay up I would be evicted."

Daughter Rosemary Brown, 53, an English teacher at Kent Adult Education Centre in Hilderstone, has tried to appeal on her mother’s behalf.

Rosemary, of Margate, said: "My mother, who relies on pension credits, was panic-stricken when Thanet council warned her she would be receiving a bill for more than £16,000 for the external cladding of the building.

"The council maintained the work was essential to comply with the Home Energy Conservation Act which requires it to reduce its Co2 emission by 30 per cent within 10 years.

"As Mum is no longer a tenant, she had to find the money.

"Under their agreement with Thanet council, leaseholders are responsible for a variable annual service charge which can include larger sums for major works."

In desperation, elderly Mrs Hacking took out a mortgage and asked the Department of Work and Pensions for help with the interest.

Her case was heard in September, but there was no help forthcoming for the frail pensioner.

Mrs Brown said: "The tribunal found that even though the cladding works improved the insulation, there was no evidence that they were needed to maintain the fitness of her home.

"As a result my mother has to find an extra £112 a month to pay the building society.

"I think it is disgusting that a disabled 91-year-old should be faced with the fear of negative equity when the council insists on doing work over which she has no control. She is financially stretched to the limit, worried about putting the heating on in case she can’t pay the bills and has no idea what to do if another big bill arrives from the council."

This is the second mortgage Mrs Hacking has had to take out to pay for her service bill. In 2000 she borrowed £6,500 for balcony repairs and a desalination procedure. Now she and her daughter are concerned there could be more hefty maintenance bills on the way.

Mrs Brown said: "We understand there are more major works to come, including replacement of the foul pipes, which could also run into bills of several thousands.

"I would never advise anyone to buy their council flat. It is a millstone around the neck."

Thanet councillor Zita Wiltshire, cabinet member for housing, said: "We are sympathetic to the concerns of our leaseholders, but the council does spell out the detail of the financial obligations imposed upon a lessee in the terms of each Right-to-Buy lease.

"Our leaseholders were consulted on this charge in 2006 and were made aware of how much they would have to pay. If any leaseholder feels the charges are unjustified, they have the right to appeal to the Independent Leaseholders Valuation Tribunal."