Bond/Deposit on Rented Houses

mush1989 · 22 April 2010 at 10:45AM

Hello all

I have found the following website offering an alternative to giving over a huge amount of money when moving in.

tenantdeposit

Search in google the above

Would anyone trust this company? Anyone used this company?

Please help!

tbs624 · 22 April 2010 at 11:36AM

Plug, plug? Any personal links to this company Mush1989, on which someone posted a similar query within the last week?

Ts - my understanding is that you get to pay what appears to be an insurance "premium" over 6 months plus a "set-up fee" . The bond checker on the website offers up a 1st payment of £ 110 approx plus 6 monthly payment of £75 approx, to cover a bond equivalent of £600. ( It' s not clear to me whether that first payment includes the "one off set up fee of around 35 quid) If you want to pay by cheque there's a fee of 5 quid.

You as the T have to settle up direct with the LL for any damage etc at the end of your tenancy but if you fail to do so and the Company have to pay out to the LL they will seek reimbursement from you, including their costs involved in tracing you /recovery of the debt. If you can't agree on amounts possibly due to the LL you have to pay towards adjudication.

If you're unemployed, or working less than 16 hrs a week, they won't accept you without a guarantor.

So what's the benefit to the T? If you pay a standard tenancy deposit to your LL it should be Scheme-registered and you get your money returned, provided you've honoured your tenancy obligations.

With this alternative you pay out several hundred quid to the company and still have to pay out to the LL for any damage etc.

Adjudication under a tenancy deposit scheme is free to use, under this you get to pay to argue your case if there's a dispute.

Am happy to be corrected if I have misinterpreted the way in which this works.

I note that it's free for LLs and LAs to use