Scott schedules for letters of claim

A Scott schedule answers a letter of claim one defect at a time: what the tenant alleges, what the surveyor found, whether the landlord admits it and why, the works with their dates, and the costs on each side.

What it is

Under the Pre-Action Protocol for Housing Conditions Claims (England), the landlord replies to a letter of claim within 20 working days of receiving it (para 6.2), saying whether liability is admitted and for which defects, with reasons where it is disputed and any point on notice or access, and a schedule of intended works with start and completion dates (para 6.3). The Wales template follows the Pre-Action Protocol for Housing Disrepair Cases (Wales) and calls the tenant the contract-holder.

Each row records the location, the defect alleged with the works sought and their cost, the findings on inspection, the landlord’s position (Admitted, Partly admitted, Denied or No access) and response, the landlord’s works and cost, the date the defect was reported to the landlord, the works start and finish dates, whether the works are done, and photos. Above the rows sit the parties, the letter of claim’s reference and date, and the claim number.

HousingSurvey Pro does not work out the reply date or decide liability. The schedule is not legal advice, a statement of case or an expert’s report in the court’s form.

Before you start

Scott schedules are on the Team plan and above. Editing the office copy in the portal needs work orders or evidence at Edit level. Anyone with evidence at View level can read it. The field-app step needs the latest version of the app.

How to do it

On site, in the field app

1. Open the survey. On a case raised as a disrepair claim, the Scott Schedule step is part of the survey and the dashboard says so; on any other survey, open Scott Schedule from the dashboard.
2. Switch on Include in this report and pick the template: Housing disrepair (England) or Housing disrepair (Wales). Other jurisdictions are listed underneath.
3. Add the parties, the letter of claim’s reference and date, and the claim number if there is one.
4. Tap Add from survey findings to start rows from the rooms and external areas you recorded, or add rows one by one.
5. For each row, record the defect alleged, your findings, the position (common reasons are one tap), the works and costs, and the dates. Add photos as usual. Under each text box, Smart Build offers neutral wording for the template’s kind of claim: tick what applies and tap Use Generated Text, then edit it as you need.
6. Finish and seal the survey. The schedule is sealed with it.

In the office, in the portal

1. Open the survey in Evidence. The Scott schedule panel is under the record’s history.
2. Choose Answer in the office to start from the on-site schedule, or Start from the survey findings or Start blank.
3. Work through the rows. Fill dates from works orders fills blank dates: the reported date from the case, and works start and finish from the works orders raised from the survey for that room, with a note of where each one came from.
4. To price the landlord’s works, search your schedule of rates in the row, set the quantity and pick a line. Its description and price are added to the works and the cost.
5. On an admitted or partly admitted row, Raise works order opens the usual works-order form with the matching findings ticked; the new order is linked to the row.
6. Tick Include in the report, then Save schedule.

How it integrates

The sealed survey never changes. The office copy is stored beside it, and the report prints the office copy when there is one, else the schedule sealed on site, and only when it is switched on. In the report PDF the schedule starts on a new A4 landscape page after the sign-off: the case details, what the schedule is for and the protocol steps, the table with its header repeated on every page, the totals and the difference between the two sides, the works line, overall comments, each item’s photos, and the sources. The findings column prints only when a row has findings, and the cost columns and totals only when a row has a cost. Costs are entered excluding VAT. When the office copy is printed, the report says it was prepared in the office and is not part of the sealed survey record.

To send the schedule apart from the report, open the survey’s Report / Print PDF and choose Scott schedule PDF beside Generate PDF. It prints the schedule on its own A4 landscape pages, with the report’s header, branding and footer, and the office copy when there is one. The button shows whenever the report prints the schedule.

An admin can hide the field-app step for the whole organisation under Settings → App configuration → Data collection, or only for some people, contractors or works orders under Scoped app configuration on the same page. The office can still build a schedule in the portal.

Common problems

• The step isn’t in the field app. Check the plan is Team or above and the step is not hidden in App configuration, for the whole organisation or under Scoped app configuration for this surveyor, contractor or works order, then update the app and reopen the survey.
• Fill dates from works orders found nothing. It matches works orders raised from this survey whose finding has the same name as the row’s location, and orders linked to the row. Check the location matches the room’s name, or raise the works order from the row.
• The report still shows the old schedule. Save the schedule first: the report reads the last saved office copy.