Claiming deposit?

Claiming deposit?

9:19 AM, 15th December 2022, About A year ago 6

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Hello, a tenant has disappeared after a possession order was granted owing thousands in rent. I have requested the deposit at DPS to be paid to me.

I have no contact number or forwarding address for the tenant.

Does anyone know if DPS will try and find her?

Thank you,

Dawn


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Comments

AnthonyG

12:56 PM, 15th December 2022, About A year ago

I don't expect DPS will try and find the tenant. From my experience, they have a fairly simple process for you to claim the deposit and the court papers you have should be sufficient evidence.
If you decide to take further court action, you may need to use the tenant's last known address, which is your property. Usually my tenancy agreements require a tenant to give me a forwarding address when they leave. If they don't then court papers go to their last known address, which is the tenanted property they left. Where I have phone or email addresses, I would let them know there is a new court action out of courtesy, even if they haven't left me with a snailmail address.
One think I found helpful in the past is a third party debt order. I used this where I had a court order for repossession and back rent, but no address for the tenant. I did have their bank account number and applied to the court for an order to take the money from their bank account. The former tenant then miraculously appeared and paid their debt. Obviously that only works for tenants who have money.

northern landlord

16:13 PM, 15th December 2022, About A year ago

I agree with Anthony G. If the tenant has not notified the deposit scheme of their new address they will send communications to the old address. If you make a claim for the deposit you don’t actually need court papers or any proof the tenant has actually gone (as after all the tenant could have just done a moonlight flit) the deposit scheme then write to the tenant at the only address they have for them to see if they want to appeal against this. The letter contains a form for the tenant to fill in that advises them that if they don’t hear from them within a certain time, the landlord’s request will be granted. The deposit scheme does not bother looking for people who don’t want to be found.

Chris

10:49 AM, 17th December 2022, About A year ago

Perhaps landlords should be holding the deposit and use the insured scheme.

northern landlord

10:58 AM, 17th December 2022, About A year ago

Good point Chris. Deposit schemes tend to favour tenants not landlords (just as with just about everything else to do with renting it is tenant centric)

Simon F

23:13 PM, 20th December 2022, About A year ago

I switched from DPS to TDS Custodial cos DPS will not release money to landlord in the case the tenant does not respond without a court order. TDS Custodial will release to landlord after a set period of time. But insured schemes may well be worth the price

David Houghton

9:54 AM, 21st December 2022, About A year ago

No they won't try and trace them. They will email them. Should this go unanswered follow the single party claims process and sign the statutory declaration. A, solicitor usually charges about £10 to witness this

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