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Frustrated leaseholders have confronted councillors over “serious maladministration” of maintenance and repair charges on their Highbury estate, including in one case £140 to replace a lightbulb.

Members of Highbury Quadrant Tenants’ and Residents’ Association are demanding a six-year audit of block charges after noticing huge disparities in their bills, raising fears that residents are being regularly overcharged.

It has led to a feeling on the estate that leaseholders – owners of former council flats – are “being used as ATMs”.

One leaseholder said his confidence in the Town Hall to properly run the service was “shattered” after being met with a wall of silence.

Highbury East ward councillor Caroline Russell called for a council investigation into the problem, saying: “How much money is the council sitting on from wrongly-charged block charges?”

Problems include:

• Charges for lift repairs at flats without a lift.

• Refunds only being offered to leaseholders who question charges.

• One block being charged £11,000 one year, while another was billed for just £1,500.

• Repeat visits and misdiagnosed problems being a “very common” occurrence.

• One leaseholder charged £140 to have a light bulb changed.

• Repairs taking up to two years when they should be started within 28 days

Block charges are regular bills for repairs and maintenance that are divided up between leaseholders.

TRA chair Lawrie Stiles said: “Is this the council being dishonest or unorganised? We want to know how long this has been going on. Unless you ask for a breakdown of the charges you don’t get one.

“The majority of people just don’t question it and pay.”

Mr Stiles spoke out after a neighbour was refunded for mistaken lift maintenance charges – but three months later the rest of the block had not been told of the mistake.

“The problem is the system is so opaque. There is no explanation so we don’t know whether this is deliberate,” Mr Stiles said. “There needs to be more oversight as contractors are just passing these charges to the council and the council are signing them off.”

Cllr Russell said: “It seem grossly unfair that residents are having to play detective and investigate their own block charges. I am also utterly shocked that residents who complain about block charges are being refunded but there has been no effort made to refund other residents.”

Council housing chief Diarmaid Ward said: “When carrying out day-to-day repairs, or large-scale capital works, we keep records of exactly what work is done to each block, so leaseholders are accurately recharged their contribution.

“If there is a question about charges for a particular block, we are happy to look into it.