Dilapidations claims sit at the sharp end of commercial property: a lease ends, the landlord serves a schedule claiming tens or hundreds of thousands of pounds, and the tenant believes the true liability is a fraction of that. When negotiation stalls, the case turns on expert evidence. Manchester Surveyors provides dilapidations expert witness services for both landlords and tenants across the UK.
Where Expert Evidence Decides Dilapidations Cases
- Scope of liability — what the repairing covenants, yield-up provisions and any schedule of condition actually require
- Standard of repair — the condition the premises should have been returned in, judged against the correct legal test, not perfection
- Supersession — works the landlord would have carried out anyway, which cannot be claimed
- Section 18(1) valuation cap — whether the claim exceeds the diminution in the value of the landlord’s reversion
- Costings — realistic, evidenced repair costs rather than aspirational schedules
Our Approach
We inspect, cost and report to CPR Part 35 standards, and we engage constructively in the Dilapidations Protocol process — scott schedules, without-prejudice meetings and joint expert statements. Most cases we are instructed on settle before trial, usually because the expert analysis makes the realistic settlement range obvious to both sides. When cases do proceed, our surveyors give evidence clearly and hold their ground under cross-examination.
Connected Services
Our expert witness work is grounded in an active dilapidations survey practice: preparing and responding to schedules of dilapidations and recording schedules of condition at lease commencement — the single best protection against inflated claims later.
Facing a contested dilapidations claim? Contact Manchester Surveyors for an initial review of the schedule and a fixed-fee proposal. Acting nationwide, including Manchester, London and Birmingham.
Acting for a landlord or tenant on a live claim? Our dilapidation surveys and schedules provide the evidence base an expert witness opinion is built on.
How Expert Witness Instructions Work
Dilapidations instructions engage both the lease and the building: the repairing covenants, the schedule served, the works reasonably required and — critically — the section 18(1) diminution cap that so often decides quantum. Instructions usually come from solicitors, though parties can approach us directly for an initial merits view before proceedings are contemplated. We accept appointments as party-appointed expert or as single joint expert, and every report is CPR Part 35 compliant: independent, reasoned, and addressed to the court rather than the instructing party.
Format, Timescales and Fees
We act for landlords and tenants on commercial dilapidations claims, from scrutinising an inflated schedule to defending a justified one, backed by our day-to-day dilapidations survey practice. Typical timescales run from two to six weeks depending on inspection access and documentation; urgent directions-driven deadlines can usually be accommodated. Fees are fixed at instruction, with joint statements, Part 35.6 questions and hearing attendance priced separately and transparently. Read more about what an expert witness does.
Will the expert support my case?
An expert’s duty is to the court, which is precisely why credible expert evidence settles cases: if your position is strong, an independent report proves it; if it is weak, you find out before spending heavily on litigation. Either answer is worth having early. Call 020 4579 8270 to discuss an instruction.