When good tenants pay a sizeable deposit, they expect to get it back. It is not a fee for the Landlord or agent to keep and the deposit should not be used as a means of manipulation against the tenant.
The purpose of the deposit protection scheme is to protect the tenant’s money. Unfortunately though many tenants find themselves in an unfortunate battle with their landlord over an unreturned or unprotected deposit. The recent story published by Shelter http://stories.shelter.org.uk/global-realty-kept-my-money/, shows a typical example of an innocent tenant in a battle to for an unreturned deposit. In that case, the agent changed the terms of the arrangement and asked for £11,000 (6 months rent) to satisfy a credit check. When the tenant, understandably declined, the tenant was refused the deposit back. Unfortunately as the agency eventually dissolved, the deposit still has not been returned.Whilst some Landlords may be disgruntled about a tenant’s entitlement to claim back compensation for up to three times the deposit value for a failure to protect a deposit, it is important not to lose site about why the scheme is so important. The scheme allows the deposit to be protected securely as separate money to ensure the fair treatment for tenants. Good tenants can also feel as ease knowing that after they have paid a sizeable amount of money, they will get their money back at the end of the tenure.If you do no think your deposit has been protected or returned, contact us at smiers@setfords.co.uk or call on 0151 203 0178 for a quick chat to see if we can help.