RICS Dilapidations Protocol Flashcards
What is the Dilapidations Protocol?
The Dilapidations Protocol is a pre-action protocol that is expected by the courts to be follow and failure to do so may prejudice a claimant’s position in court.
What must the landlord do to serve a Schedule of Dilapidations?
The landlord should serve a schedule setting out what the landlord considers to be breaches, the remedies and associated costs.
Breaches should be separated into categories, eg. repair, reinstatement.
Schedules should be served within a reasonable time, typically held to be within 56 days of the end of the tenancy.
If a landlord submits a schedule before the termination of the tenancy, at termination they should confirm the situation remains the same and serve a further schedule.
Have themselves or their surveyor endorse the schedule.
What should the Quantified Demand contain?
Set out clearly all aspects of the dispute and substantiate the monetary sum sought.
Identify if VAT should apply.
Confirm willingness to attend a meeting.
Specify a response date.
Detailed cost estimate for the works.
What should the tenant’s response contain?
A breakdown of the tenant’s surveyor’s views on the breaches and remedies and cost
An endorsement by the Tenant’s surveyor
How are negotiations expected to be conducted?
The landlord & tenant or their respective surveyors should meet before the tenant is required to respond to the Quantified Demand, and should generally meet within 28 days of the Response.
How should loss be quanitifed?
Prior to proceedings, the landlord should quantify their loss by providing a detailed breakdown of the issues and consequential losses based on either a formal diminution valuation or an account of the actual expenditure (unless in all circumstances, it would be unreasonable to do so).
If the landlord has not carried out any works then they must identify the works they intend to undertake, when they intend to undertake them, the steps made towards those works being done.
If the tenant wishes to rely on a diminution valuation, what must they do?
The tenant must stake its case for relying on a diminution and provide the diminution valuation to the landlord.
It should be sent within a reasonable time frame, but typically held to be within 56 days of receipt of the landlord’s quantification of loss.
