The Tenancy Deposit Scheme Changes

The Tenancy deposit scheme (TDS) is designed to prevent landlords from failing to return a tenant’s deposit and also ensure landlords are not left out of pocket when a tenancy expires and a tenant abandons the property. A number of changes to the TDS came into force in April 2012:

The period for the landlord to protect a deposit in accordance with the rules of the TDS and give prescribed information to the tenant was increased from 14 to 30 days.

If the landlord fails to comply with the TDS, the tenant can now apply to court even if the tenancy has ended.

The penalty for failing to comply with the TDS will now be between one and three times the deposit.