No Tub, Big Problem: Apartment owner demands Rs 8 crore from developers over missing bathtub in two-bedroom home

An accountant is suing the developers of a luxury London apartment building after discovering her supposedly "ultimate luxury" flat lacked a bathtub in one of its bathrooms. Mi Suk Park purchased the two-bedroom apartment in the Aykon London One, also known as the "Versace Tower," for £1.5 million (Rs 16.6 crore).

High-profile purchase and dispute

According to a report in The Telegraph, Park paid a Rs 4.2 crore (381,000 pounds) deposit for a two-bedroom apartment with a parking space in the Aykon London One tower, a 50-storey building in Nine Elms. The project was developed in collaboration with the fashion house Versace, marketed as offering "ultimate luxury."

Park intended the property to serve as her and her husband's primary residence until retirement. To secure the apartment, she sold her previous home in 2019. The flat, originally scheduled for completion in 2020, was handed over two years later in 2022. Upon receiving it, Park claimed that one bedroom was smaller than expected and one of the two bathrooms did not contain a bathtub, despite assurances that each would have one.

Legal action and counterclaims

Park has sued for more than Rs 7.7 crore (700,000 pounds), arguing that the delivered flat was "materially and manifestly different from the layout of the apartment as set out in the plan and description" she was provided before making the purchase.

Her attorney, Nazar Mohammad, stated, "The apartment was an 'off plan' purchase on the 29th floor facing the west and, when built, it would have two bedrooms and two bathrooms, with a bathtub in each critically." He added, "It was to be an open-plan layout. The defendant provided a plan appended to the sales and purchase agreement, and she signed the same plan."

The developer, a Jersey-based company owned by a Dubai-based parent firm, has challenged the lawsuit by filing a countersuit. The company claims Park failed to complete the purchase and acted in breach of the contract.

Rupert Cohen, cross-examining on behalf of the developers, stated that the sales brochure displayed "example apartments" and highlighted that "at the top of each page, it says 'typical layout'."

He further argued, "Park refused to complete and, instead, purported to rescind the contract by letter dated 14 October 2022. Subsequently, the defendant served notice to complete on 22 November 2022 and, following the claimant's failure to complete, a notice of termination on January 9, 2023. Ms Park issued these proceedings on 21 April 2023."

The case remains ongoing in court.