The short answer
A schedule of dilapidations is a document, usually prepared by the landlord's building surveyor, listing the repairs, reinstatement and redecoration a tenant has failed to do under the lease, with the remedy for each. A terminal schedule is served at or after the end of the lease and usually prices each item; an interim schedule is served during the term.
On this page
If you lease commercial premises, a schedule of dilapidations is likely to arrive towards the end of your term. It can run to hundreds of lines and a six- or seven-figure total. Understanding what it is, and what it is not, is the first step to settling it sensibly.
What the schedule contains
A schedule is normally set out as a table. Each line identifies:
- the clause of the lease said to have been breached (repair, reinstatement, decoration, statutory compliance);
- the breach, described at a specific location;
- the remedy the landlord says is required; and, in a terminal schedule,
- the cost the landlord puts on that remedy.
It is accompanied by a summary of the landlord’s claimed loss. Under the Protocol, the landlord’s surveyor should endorse the schedule to confirm it is reasonable and that the costs are reasonable.
Interim, terminal and the schedule of condition
| Document | When | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Schedule of condition | Start of the lease | Records the state of the premises, limiting what the tenant must later put right |
| Interim schedule | During the term | Asks the tenant to carry out repairs while the lease continues |
| Terminal schedule | Near or after lease end | Sets out the claim, usually costed, for breaches at expiry |
A schedule of condition attached to the lease is the tenant’s best protection. If you are signing a new lease on an older building, it is worth commissioning one.
What it can, and cannot, claim
A schedule should only claim what the lease actually requires. The RICS professional standard expects surveyors on both sides to act impartially on the facts and not to inflate claims. Common points of dispute include:
- Improvements dressed as repairs. Replacing an old system with a better one where repair would do.
- Reinstatement the lease does not require. Some licences for alterations require reinstatement; some do not, or only if the landlord asks in time.
- Items the landlord will not do. If the landlord intends to refurbish or redevelop, the cost of works it will never carry out may not reflect its true loss.
On that last point, section 18(1) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1927 caps damages for breach of a repairing covenant at the reduction in value of the landlord’s interest. Legal advice is needed on how it applies to a particular claim.
Responding under the Protocol
The Dilapidations Protocol sets out how a claim should progress before any court action. The landlord serves the schedule within a reasonable time; the tenant responds, typically line by line, saying which items are accepted, disputed and why, and what each should cost. The parties are expected to meet and try to narrow the issues. A Scott schedule, with both positions side by side, is the usual working document.
What the works typically cost
For London offices, one fit-out contractor’s published guide (April 2026) puts light reinstatement at about £160 to £320 per m², standard reinstatement to Cat A at about £320 to £590 per m², and full Cat A reinstatement at about £590 to £1,020 per m², before VAT. Regional costs are usually lower. A building surveyor’s review of a schedule typically costs £3,000 to £8,000 on the same guide.
The tenant’s response, in practice
A good response does more than say “disputed”. For each line it states whether the tenant accepts the breach, whether the remedy is right, and what a reasonable cost would be, with reasons. Photographs, the schedule of condition and the licences for alterations do much of the work. Many tenants appoint their own building surveyor to prepare the response and a contractor to price the accepted items, which gives a realistic counter-figure.
Service charge and other overlaps
Some items in a schedule may already be covered by the service charge, such as common parts or plant serving the whole building. Others may relate to the landlord’s own repairing obligations under the lease. Check each line against the lease to see who is actually responsible before accepting it.
Do the work, or settle?
If there is time before the lease ends, carrying out the agreed works yourself is often cheaper than paying the landlord’s figure, and gives you control of quality. If time is short, or the landlord plans a major refurbishment, a negotiated payment may make more sense. Either way, start twelve to eighteen months before expiry.
Our dilapidations works page covers the practical side of reinstatement, and the Cat A fit-out page explains the standard many leases ask you to return. For broader planning across sectors, see commercial refurbishment contractors.
If you have a schedule in hand, the form below sends a brief to a contractor who can price it line by line.