Rafael Ghisleni says a spiral of financial difficulties triggered by Covid lockdown and sky-rocketing service charges left him drowning in debt with no support from the authorities
Before Covid-19, Rafael Ghisleni was living in his own flat in South London and was sole director of an IT firm(Image: Facundo Arrizabalaga )
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, Rafael Ghisleni was living in his own flat in South London and worked for himself as the sole director of an IT firm.
Rafael had purchased his new-build, leasehold flat in Rotherhithe a few years prior for £625,000. He was content with his life.
But when Covid-19 struck and the country went into lockdown overnight, Rafael’s life took a drastic turn, and a succession of unfortunate events led to him eventually being evicted from his dream flat in February 2024 so it could be sold off way below market value.
“What followed [my eviction] was six months of homelessness,” Rafael told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS). “I couch-surfed when I could, stayed in hostels when I had the means, and eventually ended up sleeping in parks, near City Hall, and on night buses and London Underground trains to escape the cold.”
Rafael says he is sharing his story because ‘I have nothing to lose’ (Image: Facundo Arrizbalaga )
Rafael’s nightmare began when flammable cladding was discovered on his block of flats at Tavern Quay, at the same time as he was unable to work due to lockdown, with Government support being unavailable to him.
Now living in temporary accommodation in Tottenham, North London, Rafael says he has been left with a debt totalling “more than £200,000” which he says means he cannot work in his previous profession and is not able to restart his life. He has hit out at a lack of support from various authorities at a time when he was suddenly drowning in debt and struggling with his mental health.
A timeline of financial collapse
As director of his own limited company, Rafael says he was unable to access the Government’s Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) during Covid which meant he was left without a sustainable income.
During this time, Rafael also discovered the building he lived in was covered in flammable cladding.
He said: “The London Fire Brigade inspected the building and notified us to vacate immediately because the cladding was flammable. I knew there was a problem. I knew my flat from that moment was worthless. I couldn’t re-mortgage but I had an expectation that the Government was going to do something and we’d get some clarity.”
Rafael had purchased his new-build, leasehold flat in Rotherhithe a few years before Covid-19 for £625,000(Image: Facundo Arrizabalaga )
After a Waking Watch was implemented – a fire safety measure which means a building is patrolled 24/7 and ensures there is enough warning in the event of a fire – Rafael’s quarterly service charges increased dramatically.
Documents seen by the LDRS show that in January 2020, Rafael was billed £893.83 in service charges by his freeholder, Canonbury Management. The next time he received his quarterly service charge in April 2020, it had jumped to £3,984.97.
Canonbury has denied directly implementing the Waking Watch, and said it was imposed by Tavern Quay RTM, a Right to Management company which was formed by residents after they obtained the right to manage the development.
Rafael has hit out at various authorities, accusing them of a string of institutional failures which he claims has contributed to his current situation(Image: Facundo Arrrizbalaga )
According to Canonbury, Tavern Quay RTM was forced to implement the Waking Watch after LFB issued an enforcement notice. Canonbury did not respond to our reporter’s query on the service charge increases and what the fees covered.
Rafael says he paid the April 2020 invoice “in good faith” but asked Canonbury to clarify the charges and whether they included the Waking Watch or the remediation of the cladding. He went on to accuse Canonbury of “promising details but never providing any”. However Canonbury says “at all times before and during the cladding remediation project, leaseholders were kept fully informed by ourselves and the Tavern Quay RTM”.
As he had no income and faced significantly higher bills, Rafael fell into service charge arrears. He had also used up his savings as he attempted to keep on top of his mortgage and bills.
He was taken to court for the service charge arrears by Tavern Quay RTM, with the company being represented by the director of Canonbury Management.
Rafael says he has been left with a debt totalling “more than £200,000″(Image: Facundo Arrizbalaga )
Following a first-tier property tribunal, Rafael was ordered to pay Tavern Quay £9,762.48 which included the service charge arrears, interest and legal costs.
Rafael says he was initially granted a mortgage payment holiday for six months which allowed him some financial relief on his repayments. When this ended, he approached his mortgage lender, Metro Bank, for further alternative arrangements and claims he asked to switch to an interest-only mortgage – something the bank says it has no record of.
He said: “I was under the expectation that we’d get to an agreement where we’ll be able to have a break or at least move to an interest-only [mortgage].
“[Metro Bank] told me things like, ‘okay it’s going to take some time so you need to make at least one more payment in full’. I borrowed money from friends and family to be able to make that payment.”
However, right after Rafael made the payment, he claims speaking with Metro Bank became “extremely difficult”, and it later transpired that his mortgage had been sold to NatWest.
Rafael claims he was “never told” that his mortgage had been sold until he began to receive calls from NatWest, and that Metro Bank had refused his requests for an interest-only mortgage.
Metro Bank told the LDRS all customers affected by the sale were informed by letter in November 2021 and that he’d missed his first mortgage payment months before this, in July 2021.
Metro Bank said it did consider potential support but needed Rafael to complete an income and expenditure assessment so it could assess what was appropriate, but the bank claims this was never filled out, and a further request to do so was ignored.
Rafael went on to accuse NatWest of treating him “as a liability from day one”.
Eviction and homelessness
On February 12, 2024, NatWest carried out an express eviction and Rafael became homeless.
By the time the eviction happened, Rafael says he was experiencing a “severe mental health crisis”. After the eviction, he says he tried to challenge it in court but was unsuccessful. He claims months later he discovered the case was ruled in his absence.
NatWest reportedly sold Rafael’s home in July 2025 for £394,000, which he labelled “a fire sale”.
He said: “So all my life savings that I put into the flat as a deposit, plus all the repayments that were made, [NatWest] erode it. By selling it for more than £200,000 below market value, NatWest also left me with a debt that I’ll never be able to pay.”
A NatWest bank spokesperson said: “We understand how challenging Mr Ghisleni’s circumstances have been and throughout we have been keen to engage with him and direct him to the support which has been available to him.
“Mr Ghisleni has previously taken the matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service [FOS], with FOS finding in favour of NatWest. We are aware that he has made further outreach to FOS and a new case is now active and we will continue to fully cooperate with the Ombudsman to support its ongoing investigations.”
After spending six months sleeping rough and sofa-surfing, Rafael was placed in temporary accommodation in Tottenham and has been there ever since. Rafael says he feels “let down by the system” and was left “completely defenceless”.
“Whenever I tried to reach out, I was let down,” he said. “I felt that I was alone.”
He added: “The justice system, instead of being a protection, became another barrier, effectively rubber stamping the robbery of my home, my life savings, and my fundamental rights.”
Rafael says he is sharing his story because “I have nothing to lose”.
Do you have a story to share? Please get in touch with Ruby at ruby.gregory@reachplc.com
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