Section 20 consultation and major works

Section 20 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 says a landlord must consult leaseholders before carrying out works that will cost any one leaseholder more than £250. The same applies before signing a contract of more than 12 months that will cost any one leaseholder more than £100 a year. If the consultation is not done properly, the amount that can be recovered is capped.

Who has to consult

Every landlord, including a Residents’ Management Company and a Right to Manage company. It makes no difference that the leaseholders own the company, or that everyone agreed to the work at a meeting. The law still requires the notices.

The three stages

1. 01
   Notice of intention

   This describes the works and explains why they are needed. Leaseholders and any recognised tenants’ association have 30 days to comment and can put forward a contractor they would like to be asked to quote.

2. 02
   Statement of estimates

   Once quotes are in, a second notice sets out at least two estimates, one of them from a contractor with no connection to the landlord. If a contractor nominated by leaseholders provides an estimate, it must be included. The notice also summarises the comments received and says where the full estimates can be inspected. There are another 30 days to comment.

3. 03
   Notice of reasons

   If the contract does not go to the lowest quote or to a contractor nominated by leaseholders, the landlord must write within 21 days of placing the contract to explain why.

How long it takes

With two 30-day periods and time to obtain quotes, consultation takes at least two to three months. It is sensible to allow a few extra days on each notice for the post.

What counts towards the £250

The threshold includes VAT and is applied to each leaseholder’s share under their lease. If any one share is over £250, everyone must be consulted. In 2025 the Upper Tribunal said that professional fees, such as a surveyor’s, are not themselves ‘works’ that have to be consulted on. It is good practice to show them in the notices anyway, so that leaseholders can see the likely total cost.

If consultation is skipped

The landlord can recover no more than £250 from each leaseholder for the works, or £100 a year for a long-term agreement, whatever the final bill.

Take a block of ten flats with equal shares and a roof repair costing £12,000. That is £1,200 a flat. Without consultation, the most that can be collected is £250 a flat, or £2,500 in all. The other £9,500 falls on the landlord. Where the landlord is a residents’ company, that means the company and possibly its directors.

Emergencies and dispensation

The First-tier Tribunal can dispense with some or all of the consultation, before or after the work is done. Since the Supreme Court’s decision in Daejan v Benson in 2013, the main question is whether leaseholders have been disadvantaged by the missing steps, and the tribunal can attach conditions.

Urgency alone does not remove the duty. Even in an emergency, leaseholders should be told what is happening and what it is likely to cost, and as much of the process as time allows should be followed. Dispensation also does not settle whether the cost itself is reasonable. That can still be challenged.

If the cost goes up afterwards

Consultation does not guarantee the final price. If the cost of the same works rises, or the chosen contractor cannot finish and another has to step in, the tribunals have said a fresh consultation is not normally needed. If the job changes into something different, a new consultation or a dispensation application may be. Either way, leaseholders should be told.

The 18-month rule

Separately, section 20B of the Act says costs must be demanded within 18 months of being incurred, unless leaseholders were told in writing within that time that the costs had been incurred and would be charged.

How Butlin runs a consultation

For the developments we manage, we prepare and serve the notices, collect and answer comments, obtain the estimates and report to the freeholder or the directors, who make the final decision. If you receive a notice from us, read it straight away. The 30 days run from the date on the notice, so check the deadline it gives.

Further reading

• The consultation regulations for England on legislation.gov.uk

This article is general guidance based on the law in England in October 2026. It is not legal advice. Your lease or transfer deed always comes first, so check it, and take professional advice on anything in dispute. The TPI advice note attached to this article refers to the High Court decision in Phillips v Francis. That decision was overturned by the Court of Appeal in 2014, which confirmed that consultation applies to each set of works. The note also says consultants’ fees count towards the £250 threshold. The Upper Tribunal has since said, in Rose v Bracknell Gate Properties (2025), that professional fees are not themselves qualifying works. You will find more answers in our FAQs.