You've found a flat in a block over five storeys. The survey mentions cladding, or the managing agent's pack mentions "remediation works", and suddenly you're picturing a five-figure bill landing on the doormat a year after you move in.
For a lot of buyers that bill can't legally reach them. For some it can, and the difference comes down to a handful of tests set out in the Building Safety Act 2022. Here's how they work, as at October 2026, in England.
What the Act actually does
The Building Safety Act's leaseholder protections came into force on 28 June 2022. They limit what a landlord can recover through the service charge for fixing historical safety defects in a qualifying block.
Two things people get wrong:
It isn't a promise that the building is safe. The Act decides who pays for remediation. It doesn't fix anything by itself, and it doesn't say the work has been done.
It isn't the same as an EWS1 form. An EWS1 is a valuation document for lenders. If you're dealing with one of those, we've covered it separately in EWS1 forms explained. The two often turn up together, but they answer different questions: the EWS1 tells the lender whether the walls affect value, the Act tells you whether you can be charged for fixing them.
Which buildings are covered
The protections apply to buildings at least 11 metres tall or at least five storeys, containing at least two flats. A converted house split into two flats on three floors is almost certainly outside it. A typical purpose-built block of six storeys is inside it.
If the block is under that height, the Act's cost protections don't apply, and you're back to whatever the lease and the general service charge rules say.
Whether your lease qualifies
This is the test that matters, and it's fixed at a single date: 14 February 2022. A lease qualifies if all of these held on that date:
- it was a long lease, over 21 years, of a single dwelling
- the leaseholder paid a service charge
- the lease was granted before 14 February 2022
- the flat was the leaseholder's only or main home, or they owned no more than three dwellings in the UK in total
The part most buyers don't realise: qualifying status belongs to the lease, not the person. GOV.UK is explicit that a buyer of a qualifying lease keeps the protection, even if they don't live there or own other homes. So you're not asking "do I qualify?" You're asking "did this lease qualify on 14 February 2022?"
The flip side matters too. A lease granted after that date, say a new lease on a flat that was never sold before, doesn't qualify on this test however you use it.
What a qualifying leaseholder can be charged
| Cost | What you can be charged |
|---|---|
| Cladding system remediation | Nothing |
| Other historical safety defects and interim measures (like a waking watch) | Capped, see below |
For the cladding itself, the rule is flat: no service charge is payable under a qualifying lease for cladding remediation. That's Schedule 8 of the Act, not a guideline.
For non-cladding defects, things like missing fire breaks, faulty fire doors or compartmentation problems, plus interim measures, the contribution is capped. GOV.UK says the cap is spread over 10 years, and anything already paid towards these costs since 28 June 2017 counts towards it.
The caps in Schedule 8, by the value of the flat:
| Situation | Maximum contribution |
|---|---|
| Worth under £325,000 in Greater London, or under £175,000 elsewhere | £0 |
| Standard cap, Greater London | £15,000 |
| Standard cap, elsewhere | £10,000 |
| Worth over £1m, up to £2m | £50,000 |
| Worth over £2m | £100,000 |
There are two more routes to paying nothing at all, and they're about the landlord rather than you.
If the landlord group was wealthy. Where the landlord's group had a net worth of more than £2 million per relevant building on 14 February 2022, qualifying leaseholders are exempt from historical remediation costs.
If the developer is on the hook. Developers have to pay to fix buildings they developed or refurbished, even if they've since sold them.
Where the protection runs out
This is the honest bit. The Act is strong for the people it covers, and patchy for the rest.
Non-qualifying leases. If the seller owned four or more UK properties on 14 February 2022 and didn't live in this one, the lease likely doesn't qualify, and neither will you when you buy it. Those leases can be charged in full for non-cladding defects, subject to the general service charge rules.
Buildings under 11 metres. Outside the Act's cost protections entirely.
Defects that aren't "historical safety defects". Ordinary repairs, roofs, lifts, redecoration: none of that is covered. The Act is about building safety risks from past work, not general wear.
Time and disruption. Even at £0, remediation can mean scaffolding for a long time, and lenders may still want paperwork before they'll lend. Neither of those shows up as a service charge.
What to do about it
Your conveyancer handles most of this, but you can ask the right questions earlier, before you've paid for a survey.
- Check the height. Ask the agent how many storeys the block has. Five or more, or roughly 11 metres, puts it in scope.
- Ask whether the lease is a qualifying lease. The seller should know, and the landlord should have the paperwork. If nobody can tell you, treat that as information.
- Ask the managing agent about remediation. Has the external wall been assessed? Is work planned, under way or finished? Who's paying, and is it a developer or a government fund?
- Ask what's already been charged. Anything paid since 28 June 2017 counts against the cap, so a lease where the cap is partly used has less left to charge.
- Ask your lender early. Whether they'll lend on the flat is a separate question from who pays for repairs. See the EWS1 post for what they're likely to want.
- Get the answers in writing through your conveyancer. Verbal reassurance from an agent counts for nothing at exchange.
For the wider list of what to check on any flat, the leasehold flat checklist covers lease length, ground rent and service charges alongside this.
The honest summary
If you're buying a flat in a block over 11 metres, and the lease qualified on 14 February 2022, you can't be charged a penny for cladding and your share of other historical safety work is capped. The protection comes with the lease, so it transfers to you. The risk sits with leases that don't qualify, and with buildings just under the height line. Find out which one you're buying before you exchange, not after.
This is general information, not legal or financial advice. It describes the position in England as at October 2026. Building safety law and guidance continue to change, so check the current position for your specific flat with your conveyancer before making a decision.