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Wednesday 10th November 2010 Lost Your Tenancy Deposit? It Can Be Saved!

It's unfortunate that many landlords and letting agencies aren't as honest as they should be. Your tenancy deposit can be seen as a way to make a quick bit of cash, even if it is taken illegally.

Thankfully, new laws came into effect on April 6 2007, as part of the Housing Act of 2004, allowing tenants to more easily protect their deposit. Knowing how to deal with a troublesome landlord, in some cases, can now mean you get more than just your deposit back! These laws also means there are clear steps you can take to protect yourself, in the eventuality that your landlord or letting agency should ever turn sour.

The Villainous Landlord Toolkit

There are several ways a landlord or letting agency can cheat you out of your deposit:

Withholding Your Deposit -- They can claim that you've damaged the property or its furnishings when you haven't. Legally, a tenant doesn't have to pay for damages that have occurred over time through normal use (or "fair wear and tear"). Alternatively, they could simply deny they've taken a deposit at all.

Disappear from the Radar -- You might call, only to have them hang up on you over and over, or not be able to get in touch with them at all!

Letting Agency Goes Under -- In rare instances, your letting agency may go out of business, potentially putting your deposit in jeopardy.

Tenancy Deposit Protection Schemes to the Rescue!

You don't need to worry if you are suffering from any of the above problems. If your tenancy is an assured shorthold tenancy (if you're unsure, then it probably is) then it is likely that you can recoup your deposit.

Tenancy deposit protection (or TDP) schemes, as their name suggests, ensure that your deposit is protected. Landlords and letting agencies have a legal obligation to protect your deposit by using one of the three TDP schemes available.

They were created to protect tenants. In the past, resolving deposit disputes could be a big headache, which resulted in many landlords getting away with stealing deposits. TDP schemes put a framework in place that allows tenants to recover their deposit more easily.

You Can Recover Your Deposit

Within 14 days of your tenancy commencing, your landlord or letting agency must send you details of the TDP scheme they are using. If they don't, you can take them to court and get three times your deposit back. That might make you glad they didn't use a TDP scheme!

If your landlord or letting agency has used such a scheme, but is still tried to fiddle you out of your deposit, then the dispute can be dealt with by using the alternative dispute resolution process that is provided for free through any TDP scheme. This means that the courts don't have to be involved.

Whatever your situations, getting the right advice and taking the right action can help you to solve a current dispute or protect yourself should a dispute ever arise.

Posted on November 10th 2010 on 02:49pm
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Monday 23rd November 2009 Tenancy Disputes - Getting Your Deposit Back

In 2007 the Government made it illegal for landlords to hold onto tenancy deposits for more than 14 days without having submitted them to a protected insurance scheme. The UK has 3 tenancy schemes that landlords are required to hand over deposits to for the duration of a tenants stay.

The tenancy deposit schemes were created in order to protect both tenant and landlord in the event of a dispute, regarding the return of a tenancy deposit, at the end of a lease. These schemes act as a dispute resolution service in the instance of a dispute between the tenant and the landlord, that cannot be resolved between the parties involved.

As a tenant in a qualifying rented property in the UK, you should aim to ensure that your deposit has rightfully been submitted to one of the 3 insurance schemes. You can request confirmation of this in writing from the landlord with details of which scheme it is now held with.

If the landlord will not give confirmation or has not submitted the deposit to one of the schemes, you are entitled to take legal action. To find out more about the tenancy insurance schemes and how they help you to get your deposit back at the end of your tenancy, have a look at our tenancy deposit dispute pack.

Posted on November 23rd 2009 on 09:43am
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Labels: tenancy deposit dispute