Telford MP David Wright backs housing campaign
Telford MP David Wright is backing a campaign by the leading housing charity Shelter urging tenants to ensure their deposits are kept safe.
Deposits on rental properties are supposed to be placed in a government-backed scheme within 30 days of receipt but Shelter said that a survey of 4,000 tenants suggested that almost one in 10 knew that their deposit was not ring-fenced as it should be by law.
MP David Wright said: “The private rented sector is an important component of our housing, and most landlords act responsibly and lawfully, but a minority continue to ignore measures put in place to protect tenants.
“A small number of landlords often find any excuse not to return deposits, and where there is a good reason for this, the law does allow it. But landlords cannot withhold deposits because they have spent the money as it must, by law, be ring-fenced.
“All tenants have the right to ask their landlord where their deposit is being kept and if they do not feel they can ask, they should contact the council’s housing team to seek assurances."
The new law was brought in a year ago, to ensure that the money is safe if landlords go bust. It also aims to prevent landlords just taking the money if there is a dispute over damage to the property when a tenant moves out.
Campbell Robb, chief executive of Shelter, said: "We campaigned for this change in the law to stop renters from losing money in unfair deposit deductions, so it is extremely worrying that so many are still unaware of their tenancy deposit rights.
"We know that most landlords do the right thing but unfortunately some are still unaware of their responsibilities to protect the deposits that are given to them in good faith."
The average deposit paid is £992 according to Shelter and Seven million deposits have been placed in protection schemes.
Landlords that do not place deposits in one of the schemes can be taken to court and fined upto three times the deposit which is then awarded to the tenant.
