Tenancy Deposit Missing between the change of Letting Agents

kaboo

Slithery said:

kaboo said:

saajan_12 said:

No benefit in demanding something you have no right to, they'll find it bizarre and will never agree to it. 
Just deal with it when you leave - either claiming the full penalty or negotiating prompt, undisputed return of deposit . 

Sorry I dont understand, why do I have not right to my deposit?

You misunderstand. You don't have a right to your deposit at the moment, you have to wait until after the tenancy has ended.

Sorry,  but I would argue as per the law it is not a deposit if it is not protected. Plus it cannot be a fees either!

Slithery

kaboo said:
Sorry,  but I would argue as per the law it is not a deposit if it is not protected.

Of course it is, it's just an unprotected deposit.
If there was no such thing as an unprotected deposit then why is there a legal penalty for unprotected deposits?

anselld

kaboo said:

Slithery said:

kaboo said:

saajan_12 said:

No benefit in demanding something you have no right to, they'll find it bizarre and will never agree to it. 
Just deal with it when you leave - either claiming the full penalty or negotiating prompt, undisputed return of deposit . 

Sorry I dont understand, why do I have not right to my deposit?

You misunderstand. You don't have a right to your deposit at the moment, you have to wait until after the tenancy has ended.

Sorry,  but I would argue as per the law it is not a deposit if it is not protected. Plus it cannot be a fees either!

It is a deposit which has failed to be protected.  That gives you certain rights such as protection from eviction and suing for non-protection but not the right to immediate return.  Many Landlords would return the deposit in the hope of not being sued or because they want to issue notice, but that is their own choice.

anselld

Ps... if it is not a deposit then it is not your money and you would not be entitled to claim it.

kaboo

Hi everyone,
so it turns out that the deposit was protected under TDS through out. When I first called, it was confirmed by TDS over phone that it was not protected. But when I made another call just to confirm before going ballistic, TDS this time they said that deposit is still protected, said something like "its life time protection until deposit changes hands." So it was a good advice to not go ballistic on the LL.
I finally managed to get hold of the old agents. They were super non-cooperative and would not discuss the matter with me. After lots of insisting they confirmed that the money was protected through out. 
Over the last week, new agent had made a formal request for the transfer of the deposit. Old agent says that the action has been taken and the transfer has been initiated and cannot be stopped now. So at some point in the near future, the new agents will get the money. We are now given two options by the new agents:
1. Its only a matter of few days (28) and they can hold the deposit until the check out inspection. He commits that both him and the LL are very fair people!! So basically we should be able to trust them.
2. He registers it with DPS, but that would be mean refund cannot be initiated within the first 30 days of the registration due to money laundering regulations (this I have confirmed with DPS). 
We are leaning towards option 2 because it might take longer but it will be protected and we really do not trust the new agents. What would you all suggest? In practical terms is it worth having DPS protection? 

As per the deposit rules, a LL or agent should register the deposit within 30 days of receiving it. Does it mean that the agent can actually chose to not register because tenancy will be ending in 28 days? Or does this apply only at the start of the tenancy and now the agent will have to register as soon as they receive the transfer?

Many thanks.