Deposit not in a protection scheme

may_fair

x_malibubabe wrote: »

my boyfriend noted the fact that i paid it straight into her bank account (looked like her personal one, not sure if it's a business account) means that it might not be in a protection scheme.

For future reference, this isn't an indication of non-protection. A LL may keep the deposit in his personal bank account if it is protected by the insurance-based scheme, MyDeposits. It might also be the case that the LL holds the deposit in their personal account before transferring it to the custodial scheme, the DPS.

I'm pretty sure my deposit isn't protected as I've checked it with the 3 schemes and they returned nothing, but what can i do if she doesn't get back to me? What can I do if it's not protected? Reading up it seems that she may have to pay me 3x the deposit which I'm hoping is the case lol! Im not renewing the contract so moving out in July but I cant afford to take her to court or anything to get it back if need be. Do I stand anywhere at this moment in time or does it have to be after the tenancy has ended in July?

If the LL fails to refund the deposit after the tenancy ends, you can bring a claim for return of the deposit in the county court (which you can start online at Money Claim Online). It will be allocated to the small claims track, which is designed for use by litigants-in-person; you don't need a solicitor and court fees are low in the small claims track.

It would be highly inadvisable to start a claim for the 3x deposit sanction without taking specialist legal advice. Not only is this a complex area of law (so you would need to hire counsel), but whatever the value of the claim it will not be allocated to the small claims track, meaning that you would be exposed to much higher court fees (e.g. £1,000+) and the LL's legal costs. Recent high court and court of appeal judgments mean that the LL can defeat the claim even if he protects the deposit after the tenancy has ended, so long as he does it before the hearing.

may_fair

x_malibubabe wrote: »

The house needs a professional clean which they keep promising but still hasn't happened. It's beyond being cleaned by stuff you can buy in the shops. We are clean people and do keep the house as clean and tidy as we can. The garden is covered in dog poo from a previous tennant which the LL said they'd clean

You are not obliged to return the property any cleaner than it was at the start of the tenancy (in July). Did the LL have a check-in inventory/condition report carried out at the start of the tenancy? If not, she will struggle to prove any claim for damage/cleaning at the end of the tenancy (as she needs before/after evidence).

Going by the legalities what I've read online, the fact they haven't protected the deposit means they don't have a leg to stand on when it comes to holding the deposit back as they didn't comply with the law.

See my previous post. If you take the risk-free option and claim for return of the deposit only (and note, all four of you would have to claim as co-claimants), the LL's non-compliance with deposit protection is irrelevant. If the LL thought she was entitled to keep some or all of the deposit, she'd have to counterclaim for damage/cleaning, and provide evidence to support her claim.

x_malibubabe

Thanks for the replies. After much nagging and parents getting involved the house and garden have now been sorted out.

I have found a bit more out about the deposits. They provided us with a 'certificate' from mydeposits which is just a photocopy of something that's been printed off the internet, I was expecting an official document but not sure if what we have is right?

However the certificate is dated 20th October (4 girls moved in on July 1st!) and has 4 names on it, the girls have never seen this until today when it was given to us, 3 weeks before the end of our tenancy. One of the girls (we'll call her D) moved out in November and continued paying the rent until I took over in February this year. D has got her deposit back minus £100 for changing the carpets in my room (dog wee). From reading the documents we have been given it appears that D's deposit was protected, and the money minus £100 that she got back was the money that I paid to the landlord as my deposit and D's deposit is technically mine.

I'm presuming the landlord cannot do this as she hasn't legally protected it, I have a letter coming from mydeposits (I asked for it) stating that my deposit is not protected with them under my name and my address as it should be, and also have the e-mails from my landlord printed out. I have also emailed her to tell her that I have confirmation from mydeposits to say it isn't protected with them.

What can I do now? I'm at the end of my tether with this landlord, she is trying every little thing to not give us this deposit back. We had an inspection today and she told us she'd be withholding it until all bills are paid, even though they are up to date and the only one that needs paying, needs to be paid by the LL herself which she obviously hasn't done and reckons she's going to take it out of our deposits. We also got our tenancy agreement from her (which all 5 of us new and old housemates had never seen nor signed!) that states we will get our deposits back within a month providing all bills etc are sorted which they will be, but am I right in thinking legally she has to give us it back in 14 days?

Rhino666

I would be impressed with any student who gets their deposit back.

No offence to the original poster but there is a lot of letting to students where I live (Coventry) and a lot of skips outside the houses during the summer holidays.

Students mess things up and lose their deposits - it goes with the territory. Landlords prepare for a war zone at the end of the student year and look for at least twice the normal overall property rental for good reason.

If you are one of the extremely rare students who hasn't seriously devalued your digs over the tenancy period by far more that your deposit, claim it back with all our blessing. If you leave the property in as good a condition as you found it you are a rare individual - an example to society and other students - I for one salute you:)

may_fair

x_malibubabe wrote: »

However the certificate is dated 20th October (4 girls moved in on July 1st!) and has 4 names on it, the girls have never seen this until today when it was given to us, 3 weeks before the end of our tenancy.

The 3x deposit sanction does not apply if the deposit has been protected and the prescribed information provided to T, however late this is done.

I'm presuming the landlord cannot do this as she hasn't legally protected it, I have a letter coming from mydeposits (I asked for it) stating that my deposit is not protected with them under my name and my address as it should be, and also have the e-mails from my landlord printed out. I have also emailed her to tell her that I have confirmation from mydeposits to say it isn't protected with them.

You say this is a joint tenancy. So the deposit would be protected against that joint tenancy, not you as an individual.

What can I do now? I'm at the end of my tether with this landlord, she is trying every little thing to not give us this deposit back. We had an inspection today and she told us she'd be withholding it until all bills are paid, even though they are up to date and the only one that needs paying, needs to be paid by the LL herself which she obviously hasn't done and reckons she's going to take it out of our deposits. We also got our tenancy agreement from her (which all 5 of us new and old housemates had never seen nor signed!) that states we will get our deposits back within a month providing all bills etc are sorted which they will be, but am I right in thinking legally she has to give us it back in 14 days?

The LL has no obligation to return the deposit until after the tenancy has ended, and there is no legal timescale in which she must return it after the tenancy ends. It would be reasonable to expect a refund within a couple of weeks, but it could be longer. The deposit scheme will have timescales which tell parties at which point they can start a dispute with the scheme, but this is just the administrative requirements of the scheme, not based on legal requirements.

may_fair

Rhino666 wrote: »

If you are one of the extremely rare students who hasn't seriously devalued your digs over the tenancy period by far more that your deposit, claim it back with all our blessing. If you leave the property in as good a condition as you found it you are a rare individual - an example to society and other students - I for one salute you:)

I quite often let to post grad students at LSE or King's College, London. I've never had any problems and they've all had their deposits back in full.

Rhino666

may_fair wrote: »

I quite often let to post grad students at LSE or King's College, London. I've never had any problems and they've all had their deposits back in full.

Then I would suggest that there is an opportunity for you here as a student deposit underwriter.

You guarantee their deposit refund for a small fee in return for your confidence in their ability to respect landlord's property.

Regrettsbly your solvency would last about as long as your grasp of reality:rotfl:

suited-aces

I would say the good condition of may fair's properties when she decides to return the deposit is a fair reflection of reality?

ViolaLass

Rhino666 wrote: »

I would be impressed with any student who gets their deposit back.

No offence to the original poster but there is a lot of letting to students where I live (Coventry) and a lot of skips outside the houses during the summer holidays.

Students mess things up and lose their deposits - it goes with the territory. Landlords prepare for a war zone at the end of the student year and look for at least twice the normal overall property rental for good reason.

If you are one of the extremely rare students who hasn't seriously devalued your digs over the tenancy period by far more that your deposit, claim it back with all our blessing. If you leave the property in as good a condition as you found it you are a rare individual - an example to society and other students - I for one salute you:)

This is a terrible, unfair and unhelpful generalisation. All that matters in this case is what state the OP leaves his/her house in when they move out. What you think other students might do is not the point.

For what it's worth, when I was a student a few years ago I never lost a penny of my deposit, either when I lived alone or with other students.

Rhino666

Unfortunately generalisation is the nearest that most realistic, rather than politically correct individuals get to appraising the real world rather than cloud cuckoo land. From my experience of student rentals at landlord and agency level the proportion of rental income require to repair and clean property after tenancy is high compared to other rental options.

People stating otherwise are misleading potential landlords who may see the attractions of high rental yields not being offset by the costs associated.