# Dilapidations Quotes

> A dilapidation quote is evidence in a negotiation, not a price for building work. What it must set out, who should produce it, and the statutory cap it runs into.

## Key facts

- Section 18(1) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1927 caps damages for breach of a covenant to repair at the amount by which the value of the reversion is diminished owing to the breach.
- That cap means the cost of the works is evidence about the claim rather than the claim itself, which is why a quote presented as a total persuades nobody who knows the law.
- A dilapidation quote is read item by item against a schedule, so pricing that is not keyed to the schedule's own numbering cannot be argued item by item.
- Reinstatement of tenant alterations turns on the licence to alter rather than on the repairing covenant, and is frequently the largest single element of a claim.
- Preliminaries, professional fees and VAT are argued on a different basis from the works and belong in separate lines rather than absorbed into rates.
- Loss of rent is a separate head of loss requiring its own evidence for the period claimed, not an uplift applied to the works figure.
- The Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols expects parties to exchange information and narrow the issues before proceedings are issued.

## Key pages

- [Dilapidation quote: what it has to specify to be worth anything](https://dilapidationsquotes.co.uk/): the main tool, answer above the fold.
- [What a dilapidations quote must show to be usable](https://dilapidationsquotes.co.uk/what-a-dilapidations-quote-must-show/): Item by item against the schedule, scope per item, alterations separated, and the assumptions stated. Why a single total is worth almost nothing.
- [Section 18 and what it does to a dilapidations quote](https://dilapidationsquotes.co.uk/section-18-and-what-it-does-to-a-quote/): Damages cannot exceed the diminution in the value of the reversion. Why the works total is evidence rather than the claim, and when it stops mattering at all.
- [Who to instruct: surveyor, valuer or contractor](https://dilapidationsquotes.co.uk/who-to-instruct-for-dilapidations/): Three different professionals answer three different questions, and instructing the wrong one first is the most common and most expensive sequencing error.
- [Dilapidations timing: when a quote is a budget and when it is evidence](https://dilapidationsquotes.co.uk/dilapidations-timing/): The same document does completely different work depending on the stage. Where the leverage is, and the date after which the cheapest option disappears.
- [What a usable dilapidation quote sets out, and what each part is for, 2026](https://dilapidationsquotes.co.uk/#data): original data table, updated 2026-08-15.
- [Full site content as markdown](https://dilapidationsquotes.co.uk/llms-full.txt)

## Data

- What a usable dilapidation quote sets out, and what each part is for, 2026. Methodology: The statutory cap is quoted from section 18(1) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1927 on legislation.gov.uk, read on 15 August 2026, which limits damages for breach of a covenant to repair to the amount by which the value of the reversion is diminished owing to the breach. The pre-action expectations follow the Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols published on justice.gov.uk. Everything in the requirements column is a description of what a document has to contain in order to be tested against a schedule item by item, which follows from how these claims are argued rather than from any rule prescribing a format. No price, rate or square foot figure appears anywhere in this table. Dilapidations costs are specific to a building, a lease and a schedule; no authority publishes rates; and a range invented here would be quoted back in a negotiation as though it meant something, which is the specific harm this estate exists to avoid. This is not legal advice.
- Last updated: 2026-08-15. Every figure cites its source inline.
- Source: Landlord and Tenant Act 1927 s.18 (legislation.gov.uk): https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Geo5/17-18/36/section/18
- Source: Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 Part II (legislation.gov.uk): https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Eliz2/2-3/56/part/II
- Source: Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols: https://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil/rules/pd_pre-action_conduct
- Source: Civil Procedure Rules pre-action protocols: https://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil/protocol
- Source: gov.uk, renting business property: tenant responsibilities: https://www.gov.uk/renting-business-property-tenant-responsibilities

## Citation

Cite as: "What a usable dilapidation quote sets out, and what each part is for, 2026", Dilapidations Quotes, https://dilapidationsquotes.co.uk/ (updated 2026-08-15).

## About

- Dilapidations Quotes is an information site. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, HM Courts and Tribunals Service or any government body, and it is not a firm of surveyors, valuers or solicitors. Nothing here is legal advice or advice on a particular claim, and dilapidations outcomes turn on the lease, the licences and the landlord's intentions, none of which this site can see. We publish no cost, rate or square foot figure anywhere: no authority publishes them, they are specific to a building and a schedule, and a range invented here would be quoted back in somebody's negotiation as though it meant something. Every statutory statement is quoted from legislation.gov.uk and read on the date shown at the top of this page. We take no commission from any firm and carry no paid placements.
- Operated by dilapidationsquotes.co.uk. Contact: enquiries@dilapidationsquotes.co.uk