Permission to install laminate.

[Scarface]

Hello.
We live in a house with a floor flat which are the leaseholders and our flat upstairs which we are leasing. We have carpet in our whole house except from the kitchen where we have laminate flooring. Due to having a baby a couple of years ago is getting very difficult in maintaining our white carpet so we are thinking about laying laminate all over the flat. After checking the lease it says: 'To keep the floors of the demised premises(except kitchen and bathroom) covered at all times with carpet and underfelt or other covering to as to adequately prevent the penetration of sound to the other flat including the placing of adequate insulators under wireless and television sets gramaphones pianos and musical instruments'. From my understanding, it is possible to lay laminate as long as i get permission from the leaseholders and i use the correct underlay to minimize the noise for my downstairs neighbors. Am i correct? If so could you advise me on how to word the letter to get their permission, thank you.

[Macromia]

Have you done any research regarding what appropriate underlays might be?

My lease contains a very similar clause (carpets in all rooms except kitchen and bathroom), and if I wanted to replace with a different type of flooring I would probably tell the freeholder what type of underlay I intended to use, and why I considered this to provide as much sound insulation as carpet, when I asked for permission.

[leaseholder64]

I think you mean freeholders not leaseholders. I think you meant to say "ground floor flat", not "floor flat".

You have an unconditional prohibition, so the freeholder is not obliged to grant consent.

Carpets also soften footfall, and, even with solid concrete floors, children from toddler up to maybe 7 will stomp around and make noises through carpets and concrete. I can't see a responsible freeholder granting permission.