See attached photos, the little tab on the left that says "L" doesn't seem to have anywhere to snap into. Is this normal?

 

The tab is "an assembly aid" to help position the part before the retainer U-clips are snapped into their slots.

 

That is the door handle I need to repaint because the paint is so thin and is showing real wear after just a year. Thanks for the picture. Very helpful.

 

It just holds behind the armrest and doesn't snap into anything. The "L" is just for the left side variation of the handle as the right side is opposite.

This tab's purpose is to keep the person sitting in the seat from accidentally catching an edge of that cover and popping it off, since it is the edge facing the person. So mainly just reinforcement for keeping the cover on like it should.