Deposits and protection

Protection in a government-approved scheme

A deposit taken in England must be protected in one of the three government-approved tenancy deposit protection schemes:

• Deposit Protection Service (DPS) — custodial or insured.
• Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS) — insured or custodial.
• mydeposits — insured or custodial.

The deposit must be protected within 30 days of being taken. A tenant can check directly with the scheme that their deposit is held.

Prescribed information

Within the same 30 days, the tenant, and any relevant person who paid the deposit on the tenant’s behalf, must be given the prescribed information: how the deposit is protected, which scheme and scheme member is holding it, what the deposit covers, the process for getting it back at the end of the tenancy, what happens if the landlord cannot be found, what happens if there is a dispute, and the scheme’s own procedures.

A deposit that is not protected, or where the prescribed information was not given, can lead to a claim by the tenant and a penalty of up to three times the deposit.

Holding deposits

A holding deposit is capped at no more than one week’s rent and is normally put towards the first month’s rent or the tenancy deposit once the agreement is signed. If the tenancy does not go ahead, the reasons for keeping a holding deposit must be explained. Details are on our fees and permitted payments page.

Returning a deposit

At the end of a tenancy, the deposit should be returned promptly once the amount due has been agreed. Our practice is to aim to return the deposit within 10 days of the check-out, with a written breakdown of any proposed deduction and the evidence for it. Deductions must be fair and evidenced, and cannot be made for fair wear and tear or for something the agreement did not require.

Disputes

If the tenant and the landlord cannot agree what should be deducted, the deposit protection scheme’s free alternative dispute resolution service decides. The money stays protected while that happens. We do not act as the decision-maker in a deposit dispute.

How this app helps

For each property the app records the move-in and move-out dates, whether the deposit has been lodged, whether the prescribed information has been given, and the date the deposit is due to be returned. Reminders are sent to the office mailbox at the start of each window, and again each day until the task is marked complete, so the 30-day and 10-day duties are not missed.