Section 212(8) of the Housing Act 2004 defines a tenancy deposit to mean any money intended to be held by the landlord or otherwise as security for:
- The performance of any obligations of the tenant, or
- The discharge of any tenant liability arising under in connection with the tenancy
Effective from 6 April 2007 sections 212 -215 of the Housing Act 2004 (subject to amendments) requires all landlords of an assured shorthold tenancy (AST) in England and Wales to:
- Protect any tenancy deposit held by the landlord in an authorised tenancy deposit scheme,
- Comply with the ‘initial requirements’ of such a scheme and
- Provide the ‘prescribe information’ of the scheme to the tenant.
There are two sanctions where the landlord has not complied with these requirements:
- Penalty
- Prohibition of serving a section 21 notice
