Deposit Protection New Laws from April

[julles]

Hello

Did you know that the deposit protection laws are changing in April 2012

Currently if a deposit is not protected and prescribed info given to tenant, a landlord cannot use a S21.

If the landlord protects deposit , and provides prescribed info , all beit late then the S21 can be served.

In April a Landlord will not be able to protect deposit to enable him/her to serve S21

if deposit is not protected , and/or prescribed info not issued to tenant within 30 days of receiving deposit , a Landlord will not be able to use section 21 AT ALL.The only way will be to refund the deposit, or offset it against money due from your tenant by agreement, or if your tenant has brought a claim regarding the penalty which has been resolved. You will no longer be able to correct the problem by serving the notice late.

also

your tenant will have the right to claim against you for the penalty of between 1 – 3 times the deposit (the exact amount to be in the discretion of the Judge) if you have failed to serve the notice within 30 days of receiving the deposit money. You will not have any defence to this claim. Your tenant will be able to make this claim at any time up to six years after the deposit was paid.

Personally i have not understood the reluctance to protect deposit, as its easy to do ,and don't forget prescribed information must also be provided to tenant to complete the protection

[Carryon Regardless]

Thanks Julles info appreciated .

Deposit protection is a farce that isn't designed for the real world.

There are a few of us that have distant properties and prefer to carry out all dealings ourselves.

So we agree tenancy start date,

travel, check in, take dosh, sign up, present keys.

Once funds have cleared (if necessary) transfer deposit to DPS,

wait for their system to show funds and allocate.

Complete prescribed info,

agree further meeting with T, could post and hope for return but iffy.

Meet T explain all, take signature/s, ass now covered.

There are pages of repetitive info, we are expected to take all contact details of relevant parties and hope it is all correct when the parties read (if they can or wish to).

What I do is give them the 10 pages of info, leaving much of the contact info blank. The 1 back sheet with signature/s is all I need so that goes on file.

Any later argument I have the signature/s so it's approved.

I have found it a problem to go through the process and receive signature/s in 14 days so the increase to 30 days is about time.

But since the DPS was to be funded on interest made from deposits and that principle has failed, resulting in the tax payer having to subsidise massively I was in hope that it would be binned, in my opinion it should be.

Until a system is designed that offers equal protection for both parties instead of giving T's further incentive to abuse it doesn't deserve respect.

[LLAW96]

See s.184 Localism Act 2011, it will still have teething problems though.