When should my deposit be returned?
Official guidance is clear: your landlord must return your deposit within 10 days of you both agreeing how much you'll get back. The negotiation itself can take longer, but once the figure is agreed, the 10-day clock runs. If you and the landlord can't agree, the deposit stays protected in its scheme until the dispute is resolved, so the money doesn't sit in the landlord's account while you argue.
If your landlord has simply gone quiet, the schemes have processes for that too. The Deposit Protection Service runs a single claim process where the landlord can't be contacted or hasn't responded 14 calendar days after the tenancy ended; you make a statutory declaration, witnessed by a solicitor, Commissioner for Oaths or magistrate, and if the landlord doesn't respond within a further 14 days the DPS pays out. TDS Custodial asks the other party to respond within 30 working days, with an absent-party procedure available after 15 working days of silence. mydeposits asks you to request the money in writing, give the landlord 10 days, then use its statutory declaration route if there's still no reply.
Should my deposit have been protected in a scheme?
Yes, if you rent on an assured tenancy in England or Wales. Under section 213 of the Housing Act 2004, a deposit must be dealt with in accordance with an authorised scheme from the time it's received, the landlord must comply with the scheme's initial requirements within 30 days, and must also give you the prescribed information within 30 days. The three authorised schemes in England and Wales are the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS), the Deposit Protection Service (DPS) and mydeposits.
The deposit itself is capped. Under the Tenant Fees Act 2019, it can't be more than five weeks' rent where the annual rent is under £50,000, or six weeks' rent at £50,000 or more, with a week's rent being the annual rent divided by 52.
What can a landlord deduct from my deposit?
Broadly: unpaid rent, damage beyond fair wear and tear, missing items, and cleaning needed to return the property to the condition it was in when you moved in, all backed by evidence. What a landlord can't do is charge you for their own legal obligations. Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 makes the structure, exterior and the water, gas, electricity, sanitation and heating installations the landlord's responsibility, so repair costs in those areas can't be passed to you through deposit deductions.
Fair wear and tear matters enormously in practice. Carpets flatten, walls scuff and sealant dulls over a tenancy, and adjudicators expect landlords to absorb that. Historic survey data from this site found 70% of deposits returned in full, 17% in part and 13% not at all, with nearly one in five tenants who faced deductions feeling they were unfair, which is exactly what the free dispute route exists for.
How does the free deposit dispute process work?
Each authorised scheme offers a free alternative dispute resolution (ADR) service. Both sides must agree to use it, you each submit your evidence, an independent adjudicator decides, and the decision is final. The burden is effectively on the landlord to justify each deduction with evidence, which is why check-in and check-out reports, photos and receipts decide most cases.
Don't sit on it, though. Scheme claim windows are typically around 3 months from the end of the tenancy, varying by scheme, so start the process promptly once it's clear you can't agree.
What if my landlord never protected my deposit?
You may be entitled to serious compensation. Under section 214 of the Housing Act 2004, if the deposit wasn't protected or the prescribed information wasn't given, a county court must order the deposit to be repaid or protected, and must also order the landlord to pay you a sum of between one and three times the deposit, within 14 days of the order. The claim can be brought during or after the tenancy, and it covers prescribed-information failures as well as straightforward non-protection.
Non-protection now bites on evictions too. Since 1 May 2026, under the Renters' Rights Act 2025, a court can't make a possession order on an assured tenancy while the deposit isn't properly held in a scheme or the information requirements haven't been met, unless the case is on the antisocial behaviour grounds or the deposit has been returned. If you're unsure whether yours was ever protected, check with all three schemes using your postcode and tenancy dates, and see our deposit disputes guide for what to do next.
Can I go to court instead of using the scheme's ADR?
Yes. ADR is voluntary, and either side can insist on the county court instead. Money claims up to £10,000 go through the small claims track, which is designed to be run without a solicitor and can be issued online through Money Claim Online. Court fees scale with the claim: £35 for claims up to £300, rising through £80 at £1,500 and £115 at £3,000, to £455 for claims between £5,000.01 and £10,000, and fees do change periodically. A claim to recover a deposit as a debt generally carries a six-year limitation period under the Limitation Act 1980.
For most straightforward deduction rows, ADR is faster, free and final. Court makes more sense where the landlord refuses ADR, the deposit was never protected, or you're also claiming the section 214 penalty.
How do I give myself the best chance of a full refund?
Evidence beats argument at every stage of a deposit dispute:
- Move-in: go through the inventory line by line, photograph everything with timestamps, and return your amendments in writing.
- During the tenancy: report faults in writing and keep the thread. Disrepair the landlord ignored is not damage you caused.
- Move-out: clean to the standard of the check-in report, photograph every room, take meter readings and hand keys back on the agreed date.
- Afterwards: ask for any proposed deductions in writing, itemised, and challenge anything that looks like wear and tear or landlord repairs.
Most deposits come back in full, and most that don't are resolvable through the free scheme process without a day in court.
If you're not sure whether your deposit was protected properly in the first place, our free deposit checker may help you work out where you stand.