What is the consultation process under section 20 of the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985?

This consultation process applies only to leasehold properties.

 There are four main steps to the consultation process:-

1) In some cases the landlord may carry out a pre-consultation:

Pre-consultation consists of meetings with leaseholders and/or recognised tenants’ associations to discuss the scope of the works that will be carried out, with questions answered by qualified persons acting on behalf of the landlord.

2) A Notice of Intention (NOI) is served to Leaseholders:

The NOI describes the proposed works, and explains why they are needed, also:

• The landlord invites people to comment on the proposed works within 30 days of the notice.
• Leaseholders can nominate a contractor from whom the landlord should try to obtain an estimate (please note, this can only happen if there is no qualifying long term agreement in place or if the cost of the work exceeds the threshold set by the EU (OJEU procedure)

 3)  Notice of Estimates

At this stage the landlord sends at least 2 estimates of the total cost of the works. This notice invites people to comment on the estimate(s) within the following 30 days.

 4)  Notification of Reason

If the landlord chooses a contractor who has not provided the lowest estimate, the notification of Reason will explain the reasons for the choice to the leaseholders and any recognised Residents Association.