Dilapidations & Lease End Repairs – Commercial Property Disputes & Claims
In simple terms, dilapidations are a landlord – tenant issue primarily associated with the breach of a tenants repairing obligations under the terms of a commercial property lease. Dilapidations typically relate to any redecoration, reinstatement or repair works that have not been completed by a tenant, usually at the end of their lease, and which constitute a breach of the terms of that lease.
Typically a tenant’s failure to comply with their repairing and reinstatement obligations at the end of their lease will mean that the landlord is entitled to claim damages from the tenant in the form of dilapidations.
Dilapidations claims would normally be based on the cost of the repairs and reinstatement works that the tenant should have completed, plus any loss of rent for the period needed to complete those works, although there is a statutory cap on the size of the landlords claim.
Under Section 18(1) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1927 the size of the landlords claim for damages is limited to the diminution in value to the landlord’s reversion caused by the tenants breaches of their lease.
What are the Different Types of Schedule of Dilapidations?
There are two main types of schedule of dilapidations and they are as follows:
Commercial Property & Tenants Repairing Obligations
It is usual in the case of commercial property leases for the tenant to be contractually obliged to maintain the premises they are renting in a good state of repair, but of course there are always occasions when these repairing obligations are not met, particularly at the end of the lease.
In such situations, what can a landlord do to ensure that the necessary repair works are carried out to their property?
First of all the landlord could try a little persuasion… reason with the tenant and hope that their requests do not fall on deaf ears.
If however that fails to work, then the landlord is perfectly entitled to have the repairs carried out on their behalf, and issue the tenant with a claim for damages.
This claims procedure is commonly known as a dilapidations claim.
Schedules of Dilapidations & Claims for Damages
Subject to the terms of the lease agreement, a landlord is usually well within its rights to prepare then serve a schedule of dilapidations and claim for damages, although they must be careful to observe certain important points.
Property Litigation Association Pre-Action Protocol for Dilapidations Claims
The Property Litigation Association (PLA) is an organisation for professionals specialising in all aspects of commercial, residential and agricultural property litigation.
The PLA has published their “Pre-Action Protocol for Claims for Damages in Relation to the Physical State of Commercial Property at the Termination of a Tenancy”, commonly referred to as the “The Dilapidation Protocol”.
The PLA’s dilapidations protocol is a very useful document and is generally accepted as a way of improving relationships and communication between landlord and tenant before formal court proceedings associated with an alleged claim for dilapidations are issued.
The PLA’s protocol helps to pave the way for a better chance of an early settlement between the two parties without recourse to further, potentially costly litigation.
Schedules of Dilapidations
If however, no progress towards a settlement can be made between the landlord and tenant then the landlord would normally serve a formal Schedule of Dilapidations, which must summarise all alleged breaches of the terms of the lease for which the tenant is responsible.
The schedule of dilapidations should include detailed information regarding the current condition of the premises, the repairs which are deemed to be necessary and the estimated cost of the repair works.
This dilapidations schedule will be prepared by the landlord’s surveyors, usually specialist chartered surveyors with expertise in dilapidations and disrepair issues, and who are regulated by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
As far as the tenant is concerned, once a schedule of dilapidations has been formally served they will need to respond by answering all the points raised by the landlord and their surveyors.
At this point the tenant would normally appoint a surveyor and solicitor to act on their behalf in defending the landlords claim for damages.
Once these formal proceedings are issued on behalf of the landlord in the courts, then all the necessary steps, and consequently the time-scales, will be decided by the Court.
What are the Alternatives?
As a landlord of a commercial property you may wonder if there are alternatives to this particular course of action.
Settling Dilapidations Claims by Negotiation
In our experience it is usually in the interests of both the landlord and tenant to enter into negotiations at an early stage, before any dilapidations claims for damages are formally served in the courts.
In this way it may at the very least be possible to reduce the areas of dispute, if not eliminate them altogether.
Both landlord and tenant would be well advised to attempt to reach a settlement before legal proceedings are issued and on this note we would refer any landlord or tenant of a commercial property involved in such a dilapidations dispute to the “Dilapidations Protocol”.
Specialist Property & Landlord – Tenant Solutions
As a leading independent property investment specialists Investment Property Partners offer expert advice and support to clients across our specialist areas of expertise helping them to achieve their investment objectives.
If you are a property investor or developer searching for investment or development opportunities, or property management solutions please contact us today to discuss how Investment Property Partners can help you.
Further reading…
More information about the Dilapidations Protocol… here →