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October 2009 - A third of landlords continue to ignore deposit protection laws Although the number of landlords ignoring tenancy deposit legislation has halved in the past year, almost one third still does not obey the law. The Deposit Protection Service undertook a survey which revealed that 30 per cent of landlords are prepared to openly admit that they have not registered a deposit. However this figure was reportedly 61 per cent in 2008. The DPS has supported proposals for a register of landlords. This would encourage compliance with the law, although landlords have been required to register deposits with a Government-accredited scheme since April 2007. Kevin Firth, director of the DPS, said: "Good progress has been made within the industry at raising awareness of landlords' legal responsibilities. The fact that the number of landlords ignoring the law has halved is testament to the fact that most landlords want to do the right thing. But more needs to be done and ignorance is no excuse. We believe that the introduction of a national register would make landlords more accountable and offer tenants a greater level of protection. Mandatory registration and deposit protection would leave rogue landlords with nowhere to hide." Since the launch of the DPS in 2007, around 700,000 deposits have been protected, worth over £520 million pounds. The DPS is the only scheme to actually hold onto a deposit. It is provided free of charge and is funded by the interest earned from deposits held in the scheme. If you would like to discuss deposits with us, please contact our property team on 01562 514870, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or contact us on the contacts page of our website. |