If you pay a landlord a deposit at the start of an Assured Shorthold Tenancy your landlord has an obligation to protect this in one of the tree government approved schemes.
Most landlords are aware of these rules and are happy to comply, however if your landlord has not protected your deposit, or hasn’t told you that they have, you can ask them to protect it or tell you where it has been protected. If you want to know more about deposits and deposit protection you might want to look at our quick guide to deposit protection
How do I get my deposit back?
If you are still in the property but the landlord has not protected your deposit, you should write to your landlord and ask that they protect your deposit.
Request for a deposit to be protected
If you have left the property and your landlord has not returned your deposit but it was protected, you should write to your landlord and request that the deposit be returned.
Request to return a protected deposit
If you have left the property and your landlord has not returned your deposit and has not protected the deposit, you should write to your landlord asking for your deposit to be returned.