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Tenants now protected from property scams
Published: 17th April 2007
A leading law firm says landlords and tenants need to be aware of a new law which came into force on 6 April 2007 governing housing deposits.
Mace & Jones partner Ken Salmon says under the Tenancy Deposit Protection Scheme all deposits taken by the 870,000 landlords and agents in England and Wales must be protected.
"The changes will significantly improve tenants' rights and ensure that their deposits are not unfairly withheld," he said. "Essentially the legal change compels a landlord to sign up to one of three schemes that have been awarded contracts by the government (see notes to editors).The scheme follows over 20 years of campaigning and is designed to protect the UK's 1.7m tenants from unscrupulous landlords. Since the scheme came into force all new tenancies created on or after the start date, as well as any tenancy renewals, need to follow the correct procedure. Failure to protect deposits in this way will result in the landlord being fined and forced to return the deposit to the tenant. Meanwhile landlords who break the rules are now unable to regain possession of their properties by the serving of a Section 21 Notice, or to enforce the terms of the tenancy agreement."
Mr Salmon said landlords can however still make deductions for damage but in the case of a dispute the third party or insurance company now acts as the arbitrator and pays out money owed to tenants.
"As always the advice for tenants is to make sure you are letting property from a reputable company or landlord - preferably one who is a member of a professional governing body such as Association of Retail Letting Agents (ARLA)."
Email: law@maceandjones.co.uk | Liverpool: 0151 236 8989 | Manchester: 0161 214 0500 | Knutsford: 01565 634 234