Tenancy deposit not in scheme

[ritaBx]

So it's looking like my deposit from my tenancy was never put in any deposit holding sort of scheme.

Been in the property for almost 3 years and moved out last week.

The property is managed by my landlord and only advertised by an agent. The agent sorts out the tenancy agreement and I paid the first months rent and deposit to them when I collected the keys. I also signed a form for the DPS saying I agreed to the terms and conditions etc etc. And that was that, I thought it was done.

So fast forward to now, I've moved out and been trying to get hold of my landlord for the last couple of days to see about getting it back. No answer.

Called the letting agent who say they sent the deposit along with my first months rent over to him back in 2017 and it was up to him to put it in the scheme.

Still nothing from the landlord so decide to ring the dps too see if he's been in contact with them to release it. They have no record of me, the property....nothing.

Finally get hold of my landlord (well his wife) who admits that she's not sure what they did with my deposit but I'll get it back ASAP. I ask her if it was put into the dps and she isn't sure. Pretty sure that's a no.

So a few people I've told about his have told me to take it further. Apparently I could be entitled to compensation from the landlord as my deposit wasn't protected. Has anyone done this? Is it worth the hassle? They are nice people and have been good landlords and it could of just been a genuine mistake....I really don't know.

Is it something I should take further? They have a new tenant from the property and my guess is they will of done the same this time.

Threaten to take them to small claims court. I did that when I was in your situation and the very next day I had my deposit back.

If you don't want to go through the hassle (it's not an automatic thing that you'll get compensation) then I would tell them unless you have it back by a set date (7 days max) then you will investigate reporting them for not protecting the deposit.

Have you contacted all three of the possible deposit protection schemes OP? Just because one hasn't heard of you doesn't necessarily mean it hasn't been protected.

No idea how much of a hassle it is, but you could, and that's only could, be entitled to three times your deposit back from the LL if it hasn't been protected.

If you do decide to pursue it, avoid going through one of these companies that claim they can get your money back for you.

blog.scotland.shelter.org.uk/tenancy-deposit-scheme-tenants-win-recent-court-case/

We took our landlord to small claims court and got our deposit back x 3!

Went towards the deposit on our first house purchase

I would only take someone to court in these circumstances if they didn't return the deposit and had been a bad landlord. I wouldn't do it just because I could. Its only been a week so I would give a good landlord a bit more time before threatening court.

Absolutely take them to court, they have broken the law. I thought you got your deposit x 1.5 as a bare minimum in these cases. If they can't behave thenselves they should not be landlords.

They aren't a good landlord if they chose not to protect the deposit which is a legal requirement imo.

In the same circumstances once our landlord realised the situation they were in they immediately refunded the deposit and a bit extra and simultaneously forgot about the ten year old carpet they wanted us to have replaced.

You are in a fortunate position look forward to getting it back.

There are three deposit schemes. Check the other two before you conclude your deposit was unprotected. Then, if it wasn't, sue. You'll get your deposit back plus compensation.

@lyralalala it's not an automatic thing that you'll get compensation

It's not automatic in the sense that you can get it without doing anything. But it is automatic in that you'll definitely get it if you sue. The judge has discretion in how much to award you based on the circumstances, up to 3x your deposit, but the minimum is 1x your deposit. The judge cannot decide not to award you anything, or to award you less than that, if it is proven that you (a) had a tenancy, (b) paid a deposit and (c) it was not protected within 30 days.

If they've been a good landlord then I wouldn't. Why would anyone want to shit on nice people? Yeah it's the law but as long as they return it quickly, which it sounds like she is going to, then I don't personally think there's any need to take it further. The law is to protect tenants from unscrupulous landlords who try to charge for everything and anything to swallow up the whole deposit. These don't sound like that type of landlord.

If they've been a good landlord then I wouldn't. Why would anyone want to shit on nice people?

The landlord is not a 'good landlord' or 'nice people' if he did not fulfil his legal obligations. I assume the landlord happily and efficiently took OP's rent. The wife's manner on the phone shows this was not a priority. In the mean time, OP has the stress and hassle of chasing this up.

OP, check all 3 tenancy deposit things. Ensure you make a written request to the landlord explicitly asking for your deposit to be returned in full. If you don't get it promptly, threaten to sue. Don't let anyone make you feel guilty about it. Your time, effort, and stress does not come for free.

I recommend contacting Justice For Tenants, who will provide free advice.

Thanks all, it's apparently going into my bank at some point today so we will see. I sent a text with my bank details even though I know they already have them.

Thanks for responses

They will be fined a serious amount of money for not putting it in a scheme. I have been in loads of properties over the last 15 years that never put my deposit in a scheme but not sure how to go about challenging this. I have emailed letting agency but got nothing back

@ritaBx Hope the money arrived!

@vilAnelle There is loads of free advice available - Justice for Tenants and also Shelter. If you got the money back then I suppose it might not be worth taking it further unless it cost you time and effort to sort it out. If any deductions were made, though, you can take it to court and the least you will be awarded is your full deposit back plus the same amount again (assuming you win, but if the deposit was not protected that's a no brainer). It costs about £300 to go to court.