Run by a landlord in England
TenancyVaults is run by a landlord in England. Each guide is written from the deposit schemes’ own rules and guidance, and checked against those official sources on the date it shows.
TDS guide
At TDS you go first. You submit your evidence within 5 working days of TDS’s invitation, the tenant then has 5 working days to respond, and an adjudicator decides on those papers alone. Set out each deduction under TDS’s headings, with its amount and evidence.
DPS guide
At DPS, you and the tenant send evidence at the same time, within 14 calendar days of DPS’s evidence request, and neither of you sees the other’s before the adjudicator decides. Weekends count, and your evidence must arrive before midnight on the last day.
mydeposits guide
mydeposits gives you 5 working days to confirm your evidence for a custodial deposit and 10 working days for an insured one, from the case moving to resolution. On an insured deposit, everything must happen within 90 days of the tenant moving out.
Guide
Write to the tenant with each deduction, its cost and your evidence, and try to agree. If you can’t, and you both consent, your deposit scheme’s free dispute service takes over: you send evidence by its deadline and an adjudicator decides on paper. Otherwise the route is court.
Guide
Mainly the timing. Evidence is due in 5 working days at TDS, 14 calendar days at DPS and 5 working days at mydeposits (10 working days if insured). Otherwise they work alike: an adjudicator decides on paper, and you must prove each deduction.
Guide
Fair wear and tear is the deterioration that comes from a tenant living in a home reasonably, and from time itself. A landlord can’t deduct for it. Damage, missing items and cleaning below the check-in standard can be claimed, but only a fair share of the cost, allowing for the item’s age.
Guide
Evidence that the tenant broke the tenancy and that it cost you something, judged on the balance of probabilities. The deposit is the tenant’s until you prove each deduction, so adjudicators look for check-in and check-out reports that compare, dated photos, and invoices or quotes.
Blog
Yes, if the carpet was stained, burned or torn, and you can show it. Flattening, fraying and fading with age are fair wear and tear. Even for damage, you can claim only for the life the carpet had left, not the price of a new one.
Blog
Yes, for heavy marks, damage or redecorating done without permission, but not for light scuffs or faded paint, which are fair wear and tear. Even then, the claim is a share of the cost, reduced for the age of the decoration and the room it’s in.
Blog
Yes, if the home was left less clean than it was at check-in, and you can show it. You can claim the reasonable cost of the cleaning your tenant didn’t do. In England, you can’t require a professional clean, or charge for a higher standard than at the start.
Blog
Charge for the life the item had left, not the price of a new one. Divide the replacement cost by the item’s expected life, then multiply by the years it had left. Take the expected life from your scheme’s lifespan figures, and keep the receipt that shows the item’s age.
Blog
Write one statement for the whole claim, with an entry for each deduction: what’s wrong, the tenancy clause it breaks, what it costs and where the evidence is. Adjudicators decide on the papers and won’t ask for anything you leave out, so point to page and photo numbers.