England and Wales | Service Charges
Service Charges for Flats: Your Rights and the Rules
A service charge pays for the services, repairs, insurance and management of a block of flats. The Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 sets the rules, and they bind anyone with a right to demand the charge: a landlord, an RTM company or an owners' management company.
The short answer
- Costs count only if they are reasonably incurred and the work is of a reasonable standard (s 19).
- Before works costing any one flat more than £250, or a contract over 12 months costing any flat more than £100 a year, the landlord must consult (section 20).
- Every demand must come with the prescribed summary of tenants' rights; without it, you may withhold payment.
- You need not pay for costs incurred more than 18 months before the demand unless you were told in writing within 18 months.
- You can ask the First-tier Tribunal whether a charge is payable: £114 to apply in England, plus £227 for a hearing.
What a service charge is
Section 18 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 defines it as an amount a tenant pays, as part of or in addition to rent, for "services, repairs, maintenance, improvements or insurance or the landlord's costs of management", which "varies or may vary according to the relevant costs". Fixed charges are outside these rules for now; the 2024 Act brings them in from 1 April 2027 in England.
Service charge money and its interest are held on trust to pay the costs (Landlord and Tenant Act 1987, s 42).
Section 20 consultation
- Works: consult if the cost would make any tenant's contribution more than £250 (England and Wales).
- Long-term agreements of more than 12 months: consult if any tenant's contribution would be more than £100 in an accounting period.
- Step 1: a notice of intention to each tenant, describing the works and inviting observations and contractor nominations within 30 days.
- Step 2: get estimates, at least one from a person wholly unconnected with the landlord, and send tenants at least two, inviting observations for another 30 days.
- Step 3: have regard to observations and, within 21 days of signing, give reasons for the choice unless the contractor was nominated by tenants or gave the lowest estimate.
- Without consultation (or a tribunal dispensation, which costs £200 to apply for in England), each tenant's contribution is capped at the threshold.
- A director of a landlord company, or a close relative, counts as connected, so in an owner-run company a director's own business cannot supply the "unconnected" estimate. That is our reading of the regulations.
Demands and information
- Every demand comes with the summary of rights titled "Service Charges, Summary of tenants' rights and obligations" in at least 10 point type (England). Without it you may withhold payment and late payment terms do not apply.
- Every demand gives the landlord's name and an address in England and Wales (Landlord and Tenant Act 1987, s 47).
- You can ask in writing for a summary of the costs for the last 12-month period. The reply is due within one month of the request or six months after the period ends, whichever is later. It needs an accountant's certificate only if more than four dwellings pay.
- Within six months of the summary you can inspect the accounts and receipts, free, for two months.
- If you pay for insurance through the service charge, you can ask for a summary of the cover, due within 21 days.
Challenging a charge
The First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) in England, or a leasehold valuation tribunal in Wales, decides whether a service charge is payable, by whom, how much and when, even before costs are incurred and whether or not you have paid (s 27A). It cannot decide a matter you agreed or admitted, but paying does not by itself count as agreeing. The fee in England is £114 to apply plus £227 for a hearing. You can also ask that the landlord's legal costs are not added to the service charge (s 20C).
Changes coming in England
- 1 April 2027: fixed service charges brought under the rules; notice of future demands; information on request.
- 1 November 2027: a new standard demand form, and annual statements of account with an accountant's report where a tenant shares costs with three or more other homes (social landlords from 1 November 2028).
- These dates come from the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 (Commencement No. 4) (England) Regulations 2026, made on 25 October 2026.
England and Wales only. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own law: GOV.UK says RTM companies and commonhold associations do not exist there. Law text read on legislation.gov.uk and guidance on GOV.UK on 31 October 2026.
Common questions
Can I refuse to pay my service charge? +
You can withhold payment of a demand that does not come with the prescribed summary of rights, and you need not pay costs incurred more than 18 months before the demand without written notice. Otherwise, if you think a charge is unreasonable, ask the First-tier Tribunal to decide whether it is payable.
What is a reasonable increase in service charge? +
The law sets no percentage. Costs count only to the extent they are reasonably incurred and the work is of a reasonable standard, and advance charges must be no more than is reasonable (s 19). The tribunal decides disputes.
What is a section 20 notice? +
The consultation the landlord must carry out before works costing any flat more than £250, or a long-term agreement costing any flat more than £100 a year. It starts with a notice of intention giving tenants 30 days to comment and nominate contractors.
What happens if the landlord does not consult under section 20? +
Each tenant's contribution is capped at £250 for the works, or £100 a year for the agreement, unless the tribunal dispenses with consultation.
Can I see the service charge accounts? +
Yes. Ask in writing for a summary of costs, and within six months of getting it you can inspect the accounts, receipts and documents free for two months.
Is service charge money protected? +
Yes. It is held on trust to pay the costs, and then for the contributing tenants (Landlord and Tenant Act 1987, s 42).
How do I challenge a service charge? +
Apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) in England, or a leasehold valuation tribunal in Wales. In England the fee is £114 plus £227 for a hearing.
Does an RTM company follow service charge law? +
Yes. The Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 sections 18 to 30 apply with the RTM company treated as the landlord.
Do small buildings need an accountant's certificate? +
The summary of costs needs an accountant's certificate only if the charges are payable by tenants of more than four dwellings.
Can the landlord charge for costs from years ago? +
Not for costs incurred more than 18 months before the demand, unless within those 18 months you were told in writing that they had been incurred and would be charged.
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