Updating post from Reddit.
Hi all,
Was wondering if anyone in here has had a similar experience, or any landlords want to chime in.
I moved into my property on the 9th April 2025, deposit and rent was paid on the 2nd of April. I got a notification yesterday to state my landlord has only just protected my deposit after I sent him an email of issues with the property.
Can I send him a letter before action asking to return my deposit and 1/2x compensation? He assured me the day that I got the keys off of him that he’d protected it the day I sent it to him. According to the staff at TDS, he’s protected it 2 months late.
Would appreciate any advice or anyone who’s gone through this.
It’s completely private, no agency.
I'd do it when you move out.
Otherwise you're just going to immediately start a bad relationship which will only make your time worse
We’ve had a bad relationship since the tenancy started. He lives abroad, so has a friend ‘manage’ the property for him. The friend is overly intrusive, will not admit that the house is not in a state where it should be being rented out because the landlord is a cheapskate and doesn’t want to do the work. This isn’t a long term thing as we wait to buy, but I do see your point
If you do it now instead of the end of the tenancy, expect to need to find another place to rent. Also as he's overseas you might struggle on enforcing any claim for compensation. Even if you win, if they refuse to pay I think your only option would be try to put a charge on the property. So if/when it's sold you would get your money then.
Someone else in the comments said he wouldn’t be able to serve me a section 21 until he’s returned the deposit, which I think he has no intention of doing, I’m not fussed about finding somewhere else to rent, just tired of landlords thinking they can do whatever they want
Yeah, you are legally in the right. Yes, they'd need to return your deposit first before evicting you, which they will absolutely do if you kick up a fuss about something so minor. It's up to you in the end, is it worth making half your deposit and then looking for a new place to live and moving? If you're not fussed about moving, I'd do that first, then request compensation.
Thank you. I’ll have a good think and decide where to go from here
I would hold off until the end of the tenancy before taking any action. If you take action now it will sour the relationship with the landlord. Also, they can’t issue a section 21 notice until the deposit is returned to you in full.
The relationship is sour already, so I’m not concerned about that.
Thank you, that’s very interesting to know
Didnt you wonder at the time when you didnt get a notification off the DPS?
I did get a notification from them. When I checked it yesterday, I realised it actually says ‘your landlord has started the process of securing your deposit’ he just didn’t actually do it until yesterday, and the deposit certificate from them states that
The TDS should help you get your compensation.
They were actually the ones who alerted me to it, and when I called them this morning, they fully advised me to go ahead. They’ve put the deposit on hold so it’s not technically protected, as the landlord hasn’t used the correct address either, he’s used mine as his