Recording that leaseholders were told about costs inside the 18 months (s.20B notice)

What you'll end up with: a record, against the demand, that you told the leaseholder in writing about costs already spent and that they will have to pay their share, given inside 18 months of the costs. The demand then shows that the duty is answered.

Before you start you need:

• The notice already given. SynkroTech records it; it does not write or send it.
• The date you gave it, how (letter, email, by hand, or with a demand or statement), and its wording.

The law (section 20B of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985) says a cost cannot be recharged more than 18 months after it was spent, unless within those 18 months the leaseholder was told in writing that the cost had been incurred and that they would have to pay towards it. If the year's accounts will be late, this notice protects the money. Skip it and a late cost may never be recoverable.

1. Open the demand: Finance → Demands & Arrears, then the demand. Find the 18-Month Limit card. It says whether the demand is on account (estimated costs) or for costs already spent, and the deadline when there is one.
2. Press Add Notification. It says "Records a notification already served. No letter is sent."
3. Choose the Notification Date: the day you gave it, not today.
4. Choose the Method of Service.
5. Type the Costs Covered, in words a reader can match to the demand, for example "Roof repairs, September 2026".
6. Type the Notification Content: what the notice said. A tribunal will ask to see it.
7. Tick both boxes: "It told them the costs had been incurred" and "It told them they would be required to contribute to those costs". Both are needed. If the notice did not say both, it does not answer the duty.
8. Press Save Notification. It stays grey until the costs, the content and both boxes are filled in.

You'll know it worked when: the card reads "Recorded — given 12 Oct 2026 by letter" (with your date and method), and the notice is listed with Answers the Duty, who recorded it and when.

If something's wrong:

• Save Notification stays grey. Fill in Costs Covered and Notification Content, and tick both boxes.
• The notice is listed as "Does Not Answer It". It was dated outside the 18 months, or it has been cancelled. It stays on the record as evidence of what the leaseholder was told and when, but it does not protect the cost.
• You recorded it against the wrong demand or cost. Press Cancel Notification, type the reason, then press Cancel Notification again. The record is kept with your reason, and the demand counts against the 18 months again.
• Add Notification is greyed. Your role cannot change finance records. Ask someone in finance.
• After you record a notice, a demand on account shows Costs Incurred On. Before, the card said that date was "kept for the record only". The date shown is the start of the budget year, not the day the costs were spent, so work the 18 months out from the day they were spent.