The scheme has been given the go ahead to launch on July 2nd. The approval follows The Tenancy Deposit Schemes (Scotland) Regulations 2011, which came into force on 7th March 2011 and were introduced to tackle problems faced by tenants, including unfairly held deposits, and to speed up the return of deposits.
Under the regulations, landlords and letting agents will be required to sign up to and protect deposits with an approved Scottish Government deposit protection service, such as The LPS Scotland.
Kevin Firth, Director of The LPS Scotland commented:
“With 5 years of custodial deposit protection experience under our belts, we are delighted to be approved by the Scottish Government to operate a scheme in Scotland. I encourage landlords and tenants to make sure that they understand the legislation and take appropriate action to ensure they are covered.
“It will be compulsory for landlords and letting agents in Scotland to protect their deposits with a Government approved scheme as soon as the first scheme launches. It is crucial that those in the private rented sector don’t fall foul of this legislation and take the appropriate steps to ensure that they are prepared for its introduction.”
The deadline for landlords and letting agents to comply will vary depending on the date a deposit was received in relation to when the new legislation came into effect (7th March 2011). If landlords fail to comply, they leave themselves open to legal action by tenants and could face fines up to three times the amount of the original deposit.
From 2nd July landlords and letting agents can follow these simple steps to ensure that they comply with the regulations:
- Register online at www.lettingprotectionscotland.com;
- Submit deposits via The LPS Scotland website, or by post;
- Manage all deposits registered with The LPS Scotland online throughout the duration of the tenancy;
- Apply for repayment at the end of the tenancy.
The LPS Scotland has created a range of useful resources to assist landlords, letting agents and tenants with getting to grips with this new legislation, including promotional materials for landlords to use when communicating the changes to new and existing tenants - some of these are available now at www.lettingprotectionscotland.com and more will be uploaded as we move closer to the launch date.
