Here’s a conversation I had earlier with a friend of mine:
My ex landlord claims he’s paid my deposit, but it’s not gone into my account. Nowhere on my statement. What can I do if he keeps claiming he’s paid it?
Your Landlord is legally obligated to return your deposit within 10 days of you both agreeing how much you’ll get back (after the tenancy has ended, of course).
Objectively speaking, he doesn’t have a legal leg to stand on- so it’s in his best interest to make sure he returns the deposit.
God, I fucking hate asshole Landlords.
I’m assuming this is quite a common problem for tenants, even though it really shouldn’t be anymore…
Since 6th April 2007, if a tenant pays a deposit for an assured shorthold tenancy in England or Wales, the landlord or letting agent must protect the deposit into a Government-backed tenancy deposit scheme.
The scheme was introduced so any disputes that incur over the deposit can be moderated and handled externally by an impartial party (i.e. one of the deposit protection services).
In the past there have been a high number of disputes between landlord and tenant regarding security deposits (e.g. deposits were being withheld unfairly), and that’s precisely why the scheme was so crucially introduced.
What if my landlord doesn’t comply with the deposit legislation (i.e. return my deposit)?
Landlords that fail to secure their tenant’s deposit can be taken to court and fined up to 3 times the deposit amount.
Securing the deposit is a legal requirement, and it is the landlord’s responsibility to ensure the tenancy deposit legislation has been complied with.
So, assuming you have an assured shorthold tenancy (which most people renting privately in the UK do), and if you feel your landlord is unfairly keeping your deposit, then you can take the following steps:
- Step 1: Before you do anything else, try to have a civil conversation to come to an agreement. This is by far the easiest and best solution.
- Step 2: Gently remind your landlord that it is his/her legal responsibility to return the deposit with in 10 days after the tenancy has ended and after having agreed to how much of the deposit will be returned.
- Step 3: Speak to your landlord again, and assertively highlight the fact that you still haven’t received the deposit, and the penalties could result in up to 3 times the deposit amount.
- Step 4: If you get this far without any success, it’s safe to assume that your landlord isn’t prepared to comply with his/her legal obligations. So my first port of call would be to contact the deposit protection service that the deposit has been secured with, and follow their internal dispute resolution process.
If your landlord hasn’t secured the deposit, which could be the likely in this situation, then you can start the process of taking legal action against your Landlord via a small claims court in order to claim compensation (it’s notoriously a relatively straightforward and easy win for tenants). All the information you need to make a claim is over at the official HMRC website. Good luck!
My landlord is unfairly deducting too much of my deposit!
Your landlord is entitled to make deductions as long as they’re justified, which may include the following reasons:
- To repair or replace missing or damaged items
- End of tenancy cleaning costs
- Repair damage to the property
- To cover any unpaid rent or bills
However, if you feel your landlord has unfairly deducted too much from your deposit, you can follow a very similar process as described above, for when landlords don’t return the deposit:
- Step 1: Before you do anything else, try to have a civil conversation to come to an agreement. This is by far the easiest and best solution.
- Step 2: Contact the deposit protection service that the deposit has been secured with, and follow their internal dispute resolution process.
- Step 3: If your landlord hasn’t secured the deposit, then you can start the process of taking legal action against your Landlord via a small claims court in order to claim compensation (it’s notoriously a relatively straightforward and easy win for tenants). All the information you need to make a claim is over at the official HMRC website. Good luck!
Has anyone been in this situation, where your dickface landlord has held back deposits unfairly? I’d be interested to hear your story…
Disclaimer: I'm just a landlord blogger; I'm 100% not qualified to give legal or financial advice. I'm a doofus. Any information I share is my unqualified opinion, and should never be construed as professional legal or financial advice. You should definitely get advice from a qualified professional for any legal or financial matters. For more information, please read my full disclaimer.
Hey hope some one can help!
Is my landlord allowed to keep my bond (£300) if I leave my property 2 month early but still give him 28 days notice as he says I am in breech of my tenancy bur I only want to leave due to the fact that my landlord doesnt seem to be doing all my repairs he has done some ( any example he left me with a gas leak for 2 months and he was aware of this and put cellar tape on it // he left me with no hot water or any thing for 9 day ) my boiler is leakin and has been for 10 months and the pressure is always droppin and wen I report it it takes him days to sort it and I have a young child
What can I do !!