Landlords question five-week tenancy deposit cap

Only one in nine landlords believes the five-week deposit cap provides enough financial protection, research reveals.

LRG found that a further 33.5% considered it sufficient for most tenancies, but not all.

Its latest Lettings Report drew on responses from 717 landlords and 860 tenants across England and Wales.

For 13.9% of landlords, the cap falls particularly short where tenants have a pet.

Landlord deposit concerns

Allison Thompson, the chief lettings officer at Leaders, part of LRG, said: “Deposits sit at the heart of the landlord-tenant relationship, and the data shows both sides have legitimate concerns that are not always being addressed.

“Landlords feel the five-week cap leaves them exposed, particularly where pets or higher-risk tenancies are involved.”

She added: “Tenants often do not know they can challenge deductions or that alternatives to a full cash deposit exist.”

Tenants face deposit costs

For 11% of tenants, finding the money for a deposit almost put a stop to their last move.

Another 21.3% had to borrow or put other spending on hold.

Deposit replacement products offer tenants the option of paying a smaller fee instead of the full cash deposit, although that fee is non-refundable.

Yet a quarter of those surveyed tenants had never heard of them.

Challenging deposit deductions

When asked about landlord deductions, 38.2% of tenants did not know they could formally challenge them through a government-backed scheme.

However, 21.8% of landlords also claimed that they didn’t know about it either.

Formal disputes are uncommon and the biggest issue for deductions is cleaning in 54% of cases.