A tenant facing an end-of-lease dilapidations claim should compare legal services around the documents, survey evidence and dispute stage. The amount demanded is not itself a complete assessment of liability.

Define the legal instruction

Evidence and contractual responsibility should be examined before accepting a demand. Scope may include legal advice, surveying and later dispute stages with different charges.

Professional fees, scope and other expenses

Ask for written scope and a clear fee basis: fixed, hourly, staged or another agreed arrangement. Identify applicable taxes, third-party expenses and excluded specialist work. Clarify what happens if facts change or the instruction expands, and who must authorise additional work before it begins.

Comparison item Question to resolve
Lease and condition evidence Which expert and legal stages are included?
Surveyor and legal coordination What evidence supports each disputed item?
Dispute stage and response preparation How are negotiation and proceedings separately budgeted?

Compare the deliverable and excluded stages line by line. Keep a record of the agreed estimate, revision process and approval for any additional expenses.

The decision that deserves the closest review

Provide the lease, condition records, alterations and the landlord’s schedule. Ask how legal and surveying work will be coordinated and which response deadlines or procedural steps need attention. The relevant England and Wales protocol is a useful reference for discussing the process.

Prepare a brief the solicitor can price

Supply the complete documents, a short chronology where useful, the commercial objective and any urgent dates. Explain what outcome you need from the instruction. Clear organisation allows the adviser to distinguish initial scoping from a substantive review and later negotiation or dispute work.

Separate the initial assessment from a full dispute

Collect the lease, alterations documents, condition records and the landlord’s schedule or demand. Arrange them in a chronology showing relevant occupation and exit dates. Ask the advisers to identify what can be assessed initially and what requires further surveying, evidence or negotiation.

Compare legal and expert scopes using the same documents. Ask how later stages would be approved and costed if the matter cannot be resolved early. The relevant protocol is useful background, but the budget should reflect the actual lease, evidence and disputed works rather than an assumed standard claim.

This legal guide concerns England and Wales. Confirm the jurisdiction and scope for the actual instruction.

A hypothetical example

A tenant receives a schedule including replacement work it believes exceeds its obligation. It seeks a coordinated review of the contract and survey evidence rather than accepting or rejecting the entire demand without analysis.

A mistake to avoid

Treating the landlord’s initial schedule as either automatically payable or automatically invalid.

Agree how the instruction will be managed

Agree the contact person, expected updates and who can approve further work. Ask how the budget changes if the other side sends new documents, negotiations expand or proceedings become necessary. Keep advice, agreed terms and the executed documents organised so operational decisions use the final position rather than an earlier draft.

Questions before choosing

Can a solicitor quote without the lease and schedule?

Initial scoping is possible, but a useful substantive estimate needs the relevant documents and dispute position.

Should the tenant accept the demanded amount as the starting budget?

Obtain advice on the evidence and contractual responsibility. A demand describes the other party’s position and should be distinguished from an agreed or assessed liability.

Sources and further reading

Research date: 6 October 2026. Refer to the current linked guidance and written provider or adviser terms when making a decision.