Schedule of Dilapidations

Interim, terminal and Scott Schedules

An interim schedule is served during the term and is usually backed by a repair notice and a right of entry, or by a Jervis v Harris clause allowing the landlord to do the work and recover the cost as a debt. A terminal schedule is served near or after lease end and is a damages claim, capped by Section 18(1) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1927.

Where a claim goes to litigation the schedule is recast as a Scott Schedule — landlord's item, landlord's cost, tenant's response, tenant's cost, and the court's finding. Preparing your response in that format early keeps the negotiation disciplined.

The Dilapidations Protocol

The Pre-Action Protocol for Claims for Damages in Relation to the Physical State of Commercial Property requires the schedule and Quantified Demand to be served promptly, endorsed by a surveyor confirming the works genuinely reflect the tenant's liability, and answered within a reasonable period, normally 56 days. Protocol failures carry costs consequences and are worth identifying at the outset.

How claims are reduced

Opening claims are routinely two to five times the settled figure. The reductions come from evidence, not argument.

• Items that are not breaches — fair wear and tear, pre-existing defects, or work beyond the covenant
• Betterment: replacement specified where repair would discharge the obligation
• Reinstatement items where the landlord licensed the alterations or never required reinstatement
• Supersession — works made pointless by the landlord's own refurbishment or redevelopment
• Section 18(1) diminution cap: damages limited to the fall in the value of the reversion
• Loss of rent and fees claimed for a period the landlord would never have relet in any event