Section 20 observation letter template

You have been served a Section 20 notice because your landlord or managing agent intends to carry out works that will cost any leaseholder more than £250, or to enter a contract for services lasting more than 12 months that will cost any leaseholder more than £100 per year. The law requires them to consult you before proceeding. The notice is the first formal step in that process.

Section 20 consultation exists to protect leaseholders from being charged excessive or unnecessary costs without any opportunity to challenge them. It gives you the right to be informed about what is planned, to make observations, to nominate a contractor, and to inspect the estimates before a contract is awarded. Without these protections, landlords could award contracts to connected or overpriced contractors with no transparency.

Receiving a notice does not mean you owe anything yet. The notice is the start of the consultation process — the bill comes later, once the works are completed and the costs are known. At that point you will receive a service charge demand. If the correct consultation process was not followed, your contribution is legally capped at £250.

If you ignore the notice and do not respond within 30 days, you lose your right to make observations and nominate a contractor at Stage 1. The consultation process will continue without your input. You can still make observations at Stage 2 when the estimates are issued, and you can still challenge the final charge at the First-tier Tribunal if you believe it is unreasonable — but responding at Stage 1 gives you the most influence over the outcome.

Not directly. The Section 20 process gives you the right to be consulted and to challenge costs — it does not give you a veto over whether works go ahead. If you believe the works are unnecessary, raise this in your Stage 1 observations. If you believe the final charge is unreasonable, you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal after the works are completed.

A Section 20 notice is served before the works begin — it is part of the consultation process and does not require you to pay anything. A service charge demand is served after the works are completed and sets out the amount you owe. You can challenge a service charge demand at the First-tier Tribunal if you believe the amount is unreasonable or the consultation process was not followed correctly.

Include the name, address, and contact details of your chosen contractor in your written response to the Stage 1 Notice of Intention, sent within the 30-day relevant period. Your landlord must then try to obtain an estimate from them. Use the observation letter template on this page — Section B covers contractor nomination.

Your landlord will obtain at least two estimates and issue a Statement of Estimates — this is Stage 2 of the process. You will have another 30 days to make observations on the estimates. After Stage 2, your landlord will award the contract and the works can proceed. If they choose a contractor who is not the cheapest and was not nominated by leaseholders, they must write to you within 21 days explaining why.

The relevant period is 30 days from the date printed on the Notice of Intention — not the date you received it. Your observations and any contractor nomination must reach your landlord before this deadline. Send your letter well before the last day to be safe.

No. Complete only the sections that apply to your situation. Section A is for observations about the works. Section B is for nominating a contractor. Section C is for requesting supporting documents. Leave blank any sections that do not apply.