Deposit Claim Dispute Resolution for Landlords
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Landlords need to get deposit protection right. If you take a tenancy deposit, it must be protected in a government-approved scheme within 30 days, and the tenant, together with anyone who paid the deposit on the tenant’s behalf, must be given the required prescribed information within the same 30-day period.
This is a common source of claims against landlords. A deposit may have been protected, but there can still be a breach if the prescribed information was late, incomplete, unsigned where required, or not served on every relevant person. If the rules have not been followed, a tenant can bring a claim under section 214 of the Housing Act 2004 and the court must order the landlord to pay between one and three times the deposit, in addition to dealing with the deposit itself.
Deposit protection also affects possession claims. Since 1 May 2026, private landlords can no longer serve section 21 notices to end assured tenancies, and possession must usually be pursued using the revised section 8 grounds. However, deposit compliance still matters. To use most possession grounds, landlords must be able to show that the deposit was protected, the scheme requirements were complied with, and the prescribed information was given. If this cannot be proved, or the deposit has not been returned, the landlord may be restricted on the grounds they can rely on.
The key point for landlords is to check the paperwork before there is a dispute or before taking possession steps. You should be able to evidence when the deposit was received, where it was protected, when the prescribed information was served, who it was served on, and whether the tenancy has been renewed or varied since the deposit was first taken.
If there is a problem, deal with it early. Depending on the facts, the solution may involve serving missing information, correcting defective documents, returning the deposit, agreeing deductions, settling a claim, or adjusting the possession strategy.
Our specialist property litigation team act nationally and advise landlords, property investors and letting agents on deposit protection issues, deposit claims and possession strategy under the Renters’ Rights Act 2025. If you are concerned about a deposit issue we’d love to assist you.
No Win No Fee Eligibility Calculator
This is a non binding indication whether Helix Law Ltd might be able to offer you a "No Win, No Fee" agreement (also known as a Conditional Fee Agreement, or CFA). There is no cost of obligation for using this service and each case is assessed on its merits.
Area of work
We only enter into CFA funding agreements in relation to some commercial, property and construction disputes. We therefore need to understand what type of dispute you have so that we can assess whether a CFA might be appropriate.
Is the value in dispute more than £10,000?
This is important because typically it is only possible to recover legal costs, including costs funded on a ‘No Win, No Fee’ (or ‘Conditional Fee Agreement’), where the amount in dispute is over £10,000. If you have a dispute where your losses and damages are less than £10,000 it is unlikely we can offer you a CFA.
Is the value in dispute more than £10,000?
This is important because typically it is only possible to recover legal costs, including costs funded on a ‘No Win, No Fee’ (or ‘Conditional Fee Agreement’), where the amount in dispute is over £10,000. If you have a dispute where your losses and damages are less than £10,000 it is unlikely we can offer you a CFA.
Is the value in dispute more than £10,000?
This is important because typically it is only possible to recover legal costs, including costs funded on a ‘No Win, No Fee’ (or ‘Conditional Fee Agreement’), where the amount in dispute is over £10,000. If you have a dispute where your losses and damages are less than £10,000 it is unlikely we can offer you a CFA.
The dispute is:
Generally speaking tenants will not own assets. That means you might ‘win’ but not recover damages and costs- even if the court orders the tenant to pay. Whereas if your dispute is with a property owner we can usually recover your costs and damages from their share of the property.
Is your claim about an unpaid application for payment and/or retention greater than £20,000?
This is important as it helps us assess the likely cost; benefit for you, and our ability to offer you CFA funding.
Do you have a contract in writing or registered shares in your name?
The more evidence you have in support of your allegations, the better your prospects of success. The higher your prospects of success, the more likely we can offer you a CFA funding arrangement.
Is the issue arising recently or within the last 6 years at most?
All disputes are subject to limitation periods- this is the period of time in which a claim must be issued. Most limitation periods in our work are 6 years. There can be exceptions and upto 12 years is possible, but this is a factor that can increase risk to you and to us and might lead to us declining to offer a CFA. With the passage of time memories can/will also fade, and evidence can be lost or destroyed. Acting promptly can therefore be important.
Does the opponent own property in England and Wales?
We want to ensure we can force your opponent to pay if they refuse to pay. If your opponent has assets, usually property, we can have greater confidence of recovering money, property, or assets (or all the above), for you. Otherwise there can be risk that you have a good claim with good prospects of success, but if your oppoennt doesn’t own anything, you might not recover damages or losses.
Thank you for filling out the form
Based on the form, we think there is a good prospect we will be prepared to offer you a No Win No Fee agreement (CFA). Please confirm your contact details and a member of our team will contact you usually within 1 hour during usual business hours.
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