Can A landlord Just Keep Your Deposit?
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How To Get Your Deposit Back
Below are the two most successful ways to get your tenancy deposit back.
Option 1
Contact the scheme your deposit is protected with and dispute all unfair deductions and request the return of your deposit in full. The responsibility is with the landlord to prove why they have a legitimate reason to receive any of your tenancy deposit. It’s your money.
Option 2
Put simply, if your landlord has broken the law – they are screwed!
Not only can you get your deposit back, you could receive compensation on top. Keep reading below to find out how.
1 in 5 landlords break the law
If you have an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST), your landlord must do the following
Protect Your Deposit
Your deposit must be protected in 1 of 3 government-backed schemes, which are; Deposit Protection Service (DPS), Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS) or MyDeposits.
This Must Be Done Within 30 Days
Your landlord or letting agent has 30 days from the date you paid the deposit, to protect it, which is more than enough time to make sure they're compliant with the law.
Your Deposit Has To Stay Protected
Your deposit must stay protected with 1 of the 3 schemes throughout your whole tenancy, in other words, until the day you move out
For example, a £1,200 deposit can be worth up to £3,600 in compensation.
The average claim for tenants we’ve helped in 2025 is currently £3,587
Tenancy Deposit Claims Have Featured In
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Frequently Asked Questions
No, your landlord or letting agent will have NO way of knowing that we have discussed a potential tenancy deposit claim. All of our communication with you is 100% confidential. Your landlord will not be made aware that you intend to claim against them. The first time they will be notified is after you sign paperwork from our solicitor instructing them to begin your claim.
Every case and the outcome will vary. Whilst there are several factors to consider, tenancy deposit claims range between 1x and 9x your deposit value. If you paid a £1,000 deposit, you may receive £2,000 or £10,000. During your free claim review, we’ll be able to give you an indication of what your claim might be worth.
Nope. Nothing. Zilch! As a company, the service we offer is entirely free of charge. We review your case, double check your deposit protection to ensure you have a valid claim and we prepare everything for you free of charge. Legal representation is then supplied to you on a no win, no fee basis. This ensures everyone has access to legal assistance, without worrying about huge bills.
When the claim is won and settled, the solicitor will take a modest success fee and all of their legal costs will be recovered directly from the landlord.
Tenancy Deposit Claims are restricted by the Limitation Act 1980. This means you have 6 years from the date the breach occurred to make a claim. This could be the date that your last tenancy agreement was signed or the date your fixed term ended and became a periodic (rolling) monthly agreement.
Whilst having a copy of your tenancy agreement might help, it is not essential.
In many cases, we can gather enough evidence you may have to prove a claim. If you’ve lost your tenancy agreement, please don’t worry and contact us instead.
Absolutely. Due to the Limitation Act 1980, you have 6 years from the date the breach occurred to make a claim. This could be the date that your last tenancy agreement was signed or the date your fixed term ended and became a periodic (rolling) monthly agreement.
This is totally your choice. Some clients do decide to bring a claim whilst living in the property, usually when they are already planning on moving out or when the relationship with the landlord has broken down.
You are under no obligation to start a claim whilst still living in the property. Many of our clients complete all of the necessary steps and then place the claim on hold until they move out or close to moving out.
Our friendly UK based team will happily discuss your options with you to find the best and most appropriate solution.
Even if your full deposit has been returned to you, if it was not correctly protected, you would still have a valid claim for compensation. The law is very simple to follow and landlords must be fined to prevent them doing the same to other tenants, particularly those who do not receive their deposit back through no fault of their own.
It is important that you seek advice right away, especially if you are not certain your deposit has been protected. Each of the 3 schemes offer a 90-day window to dispute any deductions, and sadly we see lots of cases when unscrupulous landlords will drag things out, making excuses and continued delays to try and make you miss this deadline.
Your landlord or letting agent must secure your deposit in 1 of the 3 government-backed schemes within 30 days of receiving it from you. In addition to this, they must also inform you which scheme they have used and provide you with details regarding the scheme, also known as prescribed information.
If you have unpaid rent arrears, we will need to speak to you before we can establish whether you can make a claim. Cases like this can be complex, so please do contact us to find out more. There will be no judgement, just honest & friendly help.
Section 21 notices cannot be issued to tenants if the landlord failed to protect the deposit correctly. Therefore any eviction would be unlawful. The deposit would need to be returned in full to you and a new Section 21 notice would have to be served.
This is a common misunderstanding. The 10 working day timeframe refers to how long a landlord has to return your deposit to you AFTER any deductions have been agreed.
In terms of how long they have to raise any issues. this information is not clearly laid out.
The schemes allow up to 90 days to raise a dispute with them, so its important to get advice right away to avoid missing any deadlines.