Deposit Claim Dispute Resolution for Landlords

Any deposit received by a landlord or an agent on behalf of a landlord must be registered with an approved scheme within 30 days. Prescribed information must also be provided to the tenant within 30 days. This is a two stage process. The law has now changed so that this applies to ALL residential deposits no matter when they were received by a landlord and this includes historic tenancies.

We act almost exclusively for landlords. We are frequently coming across situations where we are instructed on behalf of landlords who are facing deposit claims by tenants for what may appear to be minor breaches.

Section 214 Housing Act 2004 entitles tenants to issue claims against landlords for up to 3 times the value of a deposit plus the deposit itself. These claims can amount to thousands of pounds.

If there are any issues such as the late registration of a deposit or a failure to provide full prescribed information to the tenant, a landlord cannot serve a valid section 21 notice until the deposit has been returned in full, without deduction. This can become a serious issue for landlords and lettings agents and one that is best tackled sooner rather than later. We encounter these situations frequently as part of our comprehensive eviction services work, with many of these requirements coming into force as a result of the Deregulation Act 2015.

Our team are experienced in handling these types of issues, including advising letting agents and landlords on the best approaches to resolve the problems in the quickest, cheapest possible way. If you are concerned you may have a deposit issue call 0345 314 2044 or email [email protected] and we will be happy to assist you.