Dealing with service charges

You will almost always have to pay a to your landlord if you rent part of a larger building. The details will depend on your tenancy agreement. This section will help you to understand what you should and should not be expecting to pay through your . It also provides guidance about whether you can get your money back if you have overpaid, what happens if you do not pay on time and how to deal with disputes with your landlord, including settling them.

What a service charge covers

  1. 1.As a business tenant, when should I first start thinking about my service charge?
  2. 2.What should I expect to pay for through my service charge?
  3. 3.Can my landlord charge me for something not included in my tenancy agreement?
  4. 4.Can my landlord include future redevelopment costs in my service charge?
  5. 5.Can my landlord include costs of improvements to the premises in my service charge?
  6. 6.Can my landlord include the costs of disputes with other tenants in my service charge?
  7. 7.Can my landlord include costs incurred due to their own negligence in my service charge?
  8. 8.What is the RICS Professional Statement?
  9. 9.What does the RICS Professional Statement say?

Calculating service charge

  1. 10.Who works out how much service charge I have to pay?
  2. 11.Will I have to pay my service charge in advance?
  3. 12.What information can I ask for about my service charge?
  4. 13.What is a sinking fund?
  5. 14.What is a reserve fund?
  6. 15.Will I have to contribute towards a sinking fund or reserve fund?

Disputing the amount of a service charge

  1. 16.What can I do if I am unhappy with the amount of service charge I am being asked to pay?
  2. 17.Can I refuse to pay my service charge?
  3. 18.What can I do if I want to dispute my service charge?
  4. 19.Can my landlord increase my service charge every year?
  5. 20.Can I insist my landlord always uses the cheapest quote for any work?
  6. 21.Can my landlord charge me for expensive works right before the end of my tenancy?
  7. 22.Can my landlord make a profit from my service charge?
  8. 23.Can my landlord charge me for improvements to the property through my service charge?
  9. 24.Can my landlord charge me a management fee as part of my service charge?

Poor service complaints

  1. 25.What can I do if I am not happy with the standard of a service provided by my landlord?
  2. 26.What can I do if my landlord is refusing to provide a service?
  3. 27.Does my landlord have to provide a service that they have charged for?

Over-payment and late payment of service charge

  1. 28.Can I get my service charge back from my landlord if I have overpaid by mistake?
  2. 29.Can I get money back if my landlord did not spend the whole year's service charge?
  3. 30.Can I get money back if my tenancy ends part way through the service charge period?
  4. 31.What could happen if I am late in paying my service charge?