All claimants who didn’t contract directly with the property owner are required to send an Alabama Notice Intent to Lien (referred to as a Notice of Unpaid Balance) to be able to file an Alabama mechanics lien. One exception to this requirement is a material supplier who provided a Notice to Owner prior to furnishing any materials to the project.

Alabama law does not specify when exactly this notice must be served. Merely that it must be served prior to filing a mechanics lien. But the sooner the better, as such claimants will be limited to the unpaid balance due to the claiman’t’s hiring party at the time this notice is served.

• Read more: Alabama’s Notice of Unpaid Balance

The only party required to receive an Alabama Notice of Unpaid Balance is the property owner or their agent. However, it may be a good idea to send a copy to the general contractor as well.

An Alabama Notice of Unpaid Balance should include all of the following information in order to be valid:

• Claimant’s information

• Statement that the claimant claims a lien on the building or improvement

• The amount claimed to be due

• Brief description of labor and/or materials furnished

• Hiring party’s information

→ Download a free Alabama Notice of Unpaid Lien form here

The statutes do not specify how this Notice of Unpaid Balance needs to be sent in order to be valid. However, a property owner must receive actual notice. So sending the notice by registered or certified mail, with return receipt requested is the best way to ensure and prove that the owner actually received the notice.

• Also, emailing may even be an acceptable means of delivery of the AL Notice of Unpaid Balance.

As mentioned above, there is no specific deadline to serve a Notice of Unpaid Balance, only that it is served prior to filing a mechanics lien. Failure to send this notice prior to the lien filing, will render the claim invalid. When calculating when you should send this notice, there are two things to keep in mind:

• The general lien filing deadline in Alabama is 4 months after the date of last furnishing labor and materials to the project.

• Most claimants in Alabama are limited to an unpaid balance lien, so the earlier this notice is served, the more protection the lien claim will provide.