Deposit and withholding keys

[Battered landlord]

I’ve been a bit naive. I had a short hold tenancy agreement with tenants signed 18 months ago for a year. They have just moved out. I only recently obtained a small portion of the deposit (initially was asked if I could give them a bit of a grace period to get depot together). They promised to pay a bit of the deposit monthly but in the meantime gave notice and refused to pay the remainder. I was waiting until the deposit was paid in full before putting it into a protected scheme. I’ve since been told I should have paid in the small portion. Is this the case if it was outside the one year tenancy agreement?

[mariner]

So where is the 'withholding keys' element of your OP?t.Any partial deposits should be duly protected within 30 days of receipt.
Best not to grant T/hand over keys until T has made all payments.

[jpkeates]

Each time some of the deposit was received you had 30 days to protect it.

[DPT57]

I think you've been played. Expect a deposit penalty claim in the near future.

[Battered landlord]

I’ve definitely been played. I received only a single part payment several months after the year tenancy agreement was up. I am livid as I bent over backwards to accommodate ridiculous demands at significant cost to myself before I said “no” to further unnecessary work requests. Clearly, allowing a grace period was a mistake too as they were affronted when I re-requested the deposit. As the deposit payment was made after the year’s tenancy agreement, should it still have been paid into a scheme? The paltry amount received does not cover the damage anyway - I’d be happy to write the additional costs off just to move on, but I’m worried that instead of being grateful, they’ll take the piss again by suing at a later date.

[jpkeates]

As the deposit payment was made after the year’s tenancy agreement, should it still have been paid into a scheme?

Yes it should have been protected.

[JK0]

You need to get them to sign receipt 'in full & final settlement of any claims, now or in the future'.

[Kape65]

If it is a paltry amount then they can't sting you for much! If they wanted to play you then they would have drip-fed the deposit to you over the 12 months. I dread to think how much you would be on the hook for then!

[Jon66]

Was it paid in cash?

[Battered landlord]

No it wasn’t paid in cash and amounts to about a week’s rent. Damages to property come to a lot more which I won’t be pursuing beyond the deposit received to date. My concern is that even if I give them back the deposit and further cut my losses I’ll get sued anyway. I don’t think they’ll sign anything. I feel like I’m going mad as stuff they are saying now (in writing) is totally opposite to stuff they have previously said (also in writing). The most bizarre and blatant lies are coming in waves of texts.

[JK0]

I don’t think they’ll sign anything.

Offer the money in pound notes in a clear plastic bag. Say some nonsense about you need them to confirm receipt, and have the receipt typed up. If they don't want to sign the receipt, they don't get the cash.

As long as you have the signed receipt, any lawyer will tell them they have no chance.

[MdeB]

Damages to property come to a lot more which I won’t be pursuing beyond the deposit received to date.

The biggest penalty you can be charged is 3 times the deposit plus return of the deposit, so about 4 weeks rent.

Identify what you are reasonably due for the damage and if that exceeds the above amount, then write to them identifying your claim and stating something long the lines of "This is offset by the deposit I have taken and any monies I might lawfully owe you; I will not be pursuing you for further money".
If it is less than 4 weeks rent, then you may want to return part or all of the deposit, and include your claim and a similar statement to the above.

BEFORE you do that:

1. Read and understand any criticism of my suggestion by other posters.
2. Take legal advice.

[Battered landlord]

Thanks. Do you think I should give a deadline for when they need to accept the offer? I want to stop the incessant random and spurious claims which I keep having to refute and dig out evidence for. I wish I'd known about protecting partial deposits - schoolboy error - have always used a managing agent before, so knew about protection, just didn't know about protecting partial amounts (no excuse I know, and .

[Battered landlord]

posted too soon.... I understand it's there to protect tenants, but it's also v easy for tenants to exploit, and there is no leeway for landlords if it's protected slightly late).

[Section20z]

posted too soon.... I understand it's there to protect tenants, but it's also v easy for tenants to exploit, and there is no leeway for landlords if it's protected slightly late).

Scheme has nothing to do with protecting tenants and everything to do with HMRC tracking rents / landlords.