Tenancy deposit scheme 'not working'

Posted: 05 Jul 2007 11:06:34 GMT

The tenancy deposit scheme, set up to make managing disputes between landlords and tenants easier, has failed, the Residential Landlords Association (RLA) has claimed.

The tenancy deposit scheme, set up to make managing disputes between landlords and tenants easier, has failed, the Residential Landlords Association (RLA) has claimed.

According to the association, the scheme is ineffective and inconvenient because of the length of time taken to return the deposit to the tenant at the end of the tenancy.

A third party is supposed to hold the tenant's deposit in order to protect both landlord and tenant, should a dispute over unpaid bills develop.

"The government failed in its objective," said the director of the RLA, Alan Ward.

"They said they wanted to speed up the repayment of deposits to tenants. Even if you've got an absolutely perfect tenant who presents you with the [bills] on the last day of the tenancy, you've still got two weeks before the money gets back to the tenant - and the tenant's still got to pay a deposit to the next landlord."

This is an inconvenience for both landlord and tenant, Mr Ward added.

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