Agentic UK commercial lease dilapidations schedule of condition, terminal schedule response, and diminution in value cap assessment service for SME tenants (1–50 staff) facing end-of-lease dilapidations claims from commercial landlords. Replaces the building surveyor who charges £1,200–£4,000 to review the landlord's schedule, draft a counter-schedule disputing items, and produce a diminution cap argument under Section 18(1) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1927 — a process where most SME tenants simply pay inflated claims because they cannot afford professional representation.
Why now
No live signal batch provided today; justified by the post-COVID commercial lease expiry wave (many 5-year leases signed in 2019–2020 now expiring 2024–2025) creating a surge in dilapidations disputes, widely discussed in r/legaladvice UK threads and commercial property forums.
Commercial value
~85,000 commercial leases expire in the UK annually; average dilapidations claim is £15,000–£80,000 for SME premises. Surveyors charge £1,200–£4,000 to defend. ACV £799–£1,499 per lease event. Budget line is 'building surveyor / dilapidations consultant' — a recognised, unavoidable cost at lease end. TAM £50M+ in surveyor fees alone, with most SMEs currently unserved.
Go-to-market
Target SME tenants via r/legaladvice UK, UK commercial property solicitor referral partnerships, and LinkedIn ads targeting 'office manager' and 'MD' at companies with 5–50 staff. Price at £499 for counter-schedule review and response letter, £799 for full Section 18 cap assessment. First 10 customers via direct response to r/legaladvice UK dilapidations posts.
2-week MVP
Single output: a written counter-schedule response letter only. Customer uploads the landlord's schedule of dilapidations (PDF) and answers 8 questions (lease dates, property type, permitted alterations, current condition photos). LLM analyses each claimed item, flags disputable items by legal category (supersession, Section 18 cap, betterment), and drafts a formal counter-schedule letter. No surveyor site visit coordination, no full legal representation — cut entirely. Day-1 outcome: a professional counter-schedule letter delivered in 3 hours for £499, giving the tenant a defensible starting position against a £15,000+ claim.
Agent score
0.60 — Commercial score reflects a high-stakes, time-bound event (lease expiry) with a clear incumbent cost (surveyor fees) and strong willingness to pay when facing a five-figure claim; limited by transaction frequency per customer. Speed score is high — PDF intake plus LLM counter-schedule generation is a 10-day build, and first customers are reachable via r/legaladvice UK without paid ads. Defensibility is below average — the legal framework is public and a rival could copy quickly; moat would build only through a proprietary case outcome database.
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