Property Blog
Tenant Deposit Protection Rules
- Principal Solicitor
- September 29, 2021
Did you know?
Residential Landlords have a legal obligation to pay deposits received from tenants into a deposit protection scheme?
When your deposit must be protected!
Your deposit must be protected if you have an Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement which is the most common type of tenancy agreement used for residential properties.
A Landlord or Agent has to protect your deposit with an authorised scheme and give you certain written information about the scheme within 30 days from when you pay your deposit. The deposit must remain protected throughout the tenancy.
What information must be provided to the Tenant?
A Landlord or Agent must provide you with their own contact details and the contact details of the Deposit Protection Scheme they use to protect a deposit.
The Landlord or Agent's duty to you
The Landlord or Agent must also give you a scheme leaflet and written information about:
- The amount of the deposit paid and address of the tenancy property;
- The return of your deposit and when deductions can be made by the Landlord or Agent;
- Using the deposit scheme’s dispute resolution service if you can’t agree on the deductions;
- What happens if the Tenant does not get a response from the Landlord at the end of the tenancy;
- The Landlord or Agent must sign a certificate to confirm the information is accurate.
Penalties for non-compliance
Landlords can be penalised by the Courts where they fail to protect a deposit within the time limits provided.
A Tenant could make a compensation claim against a Landlord or Agent who fails to protect a deposit or protect it late.
A Tenant has 6 years to make a claim for compensation and they do not need to wait until their tenancy has ended and moved on.
Why choose CSB Solicitors?
If you are a Tenant and want to make a compensation claim against your Landlord if they have breached any of their obligations regarding the protection of your deposit.
More information can be found here.
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The contents of our blogs is to be treated as general guidance only. Please do not take any action based on the content of our blogs unless you have specifically instructed us to provide you with legal advice. CSB Solicitors do not accept responsibility for any errors or inaccuracies, loss, or damage in circumstances where there is no formal retainer between us and where we have not given you specific advice relating to a matter and where you have given us full details of the same.
The contents of our blogs are based on English Law, and because they contain historical material, that information may be out of date. For that reason, please consider the date that the blog was posted and remember that the laws may differ in different legal jurisdictions.
