TDS custodial scheme sees sharp rise in number of tenancy deposits protected

There was a 73% increase in the number of landlords and letting agents that signed up to the TDS' custodial scheme during 2018-19, compared with the previous financial year. 

Despite the growing popularity of alternative deposit replacement insurance, the latest annual review from the TDS shows that an increasing number of landlords and agents are joining its custodial scheme. 

As many of you will already know, deposits taken on assured shorthold tenancies in England and Wales by landlords or letting agents must be protected within 30 days in any one of three government-backed insurance based or custodial deposit protection schemes operated by MyDeposits, Deposit Protection Service (DPS) and the TDS. 

Custodial scheme

The custodial scheme allows landlords or agents to hand over the deposit for protection during the tenancy, with no fees attached. The scheme is funded entirely from the interest earned from the deposit pool. 

Insured scheme 

The insurance product enables landlords or agents to retain the deposit during the tenancy but in return pay a protection fee to the scheme. 

There are separate tenancy deposit protection schemes in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Steve Harriott, CEO at TDS, said: “We’re seeing an increasing number of landlords and agents joining our free custodial scheme. 

“We’ve designed the scheme to make life easier and save our agent and landlord customers time, in terms of excellent customer service, speedy adjudication times and flexible technology, which is proving very popular.”

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