What the law requires
Under the Housing Act 2004 you must, within 30 days of receiving a tenancy deposit:
- Protect it in an approved scheme (TDS, DPS or mydeposits).
- Give the tenant and any relevant person the prescribed information and the scheme leaflet.
Deposits are capped by the Tenant Fees Act 2019 at five weeks' rent (six weeks where the annual rent is £50,000 or more).
If you get it wrong
The court can order you to repay the deposit plus one to three times its value, and possession claims can be defeated.
At the end of the tenancy
Deductions must be evidenced. A dated, photographic inventory and check-out report is the single most effective evidence in a scheme adjudication — LIS produces both.