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Fast Track Quotation →Joyner v Weeks [1891]
Joyner v Weeks is a Court of Appeal decision that preceded Section 18 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1927. The court held that damages for breach of a tenant’s repairing covenant were the cost of the works needed to put the premises back into the condition required by the lease.
The key point
The lower court had decided that the diminution in the value of the property owing to the breaches was the appropriate remedy. The Court of Appeal disagreed and fixed damages at the cost of the works. Section 18 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1927 has since settled that difference in favour of the diminution approach. Had Section 18 been in force in 1891, the outcome of the case might have been different.
After Section 18
Section 18 caps damages at the diminution in the value of the reversion caused by the tenant’s breaches. The cost of works remains the surveyor’s starting figure on a terminal schedule of dilapidations, but it is no longer the recoverable amount where the diminution is lower.
Estimates in practice
In most cases dilapidations claims are settled on the basis of estimates rather than the actual cost of the works. A priced schedule allows the surveyors to agree a figure quickly. Waiting for the landlord to carry out the works and produce invoices delays settlement, adds cost, and exposes the claim to supersession arguments where later works absorb the tenant’s breaches.
Help with a terminal schedule
We prepare and respond to terminal schedules of dilapidations on the surveyor side. See the dilapidations surveyor service for what we do on a live instruction.
Related knowledge
Compare this article with the nearest matching pages if you want to follow the topic into related surveying questions.
A practical guide to Section 18 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1927: the diminution cap on repair damages, the second-limb demolition defence, evidence requirements, and how tenants and landlords use Section 18 in negotiation.
A practical guide to the meaning of diminution in value in commercial dilapidations — the concept behind the Section 18 statutory cap, the two valuations that define it, when it bites on a claim, what evidence is needed, and how it sits alongside supersession.
A practical guide to supersession in dilapidations — what it means, when it removes items from a terminal claim, the evidence required, and how it works alongside Section 18 for tenants and landlords in commercial leases.
A practical guide to terminal schedules of dilapidations in commercial leases — service timing under the Dilapidations Protocol, document content, how it differs from an interim schedule, and how Section 18 and supersession shape the final claim.
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