Every assured shorthold tenancy deposit in England and Wales must sit with a government-approved scheme within 30 days of the landlord receiving it (Housing Act 2004 s.213). All three schemes run free online checkers - you need only your surname, the property postcode and often the deposit amount.
Protected within 30 days + prescribed information served = compliant. Protected late or PI missing = a s.214 breach you can claim on (1x-3x deposit) AND a s.21 defence. Never protected = strongest tenant position: claim plus the landlord cannot serve valid s.21 until remedied.
Screenshot the checker result with its date; save the scheme certificate or PI document if you have it; note the protection date against your move-in date. This five-minute evidence pack is the backbone of any compensation claim.
Agree the return with your landlord and the scheme releases funds within about 10 days; if the landlord proposes deductions you dispute, use the scheme's free dispute service (DPS ADR, TDS adjudication or MyDeposits arbitration). If the deposit was never protected, the county court route (1-3x compensation plus the deposit itself) applies instead.
Use the MyDeposits online checker (mydeposits.co.uk): enter your surname, the property postcode and (optionally) the deposit amount. If nothing appears, try DPS and TDS - landlords sometimes register with a different scheme than the tenancy pack suggests.
A government-approved scheme (DPS, MyDeposits or TDS) that holds or insures your deposit and provides a free dispute service. Protection within 30 days is a legal duty under Housing Act 2004 s.213; breach entitles tenants to 1-3x compensation and blocks Section 21 eviction.
The DPS (custodial) emails a protection certificate when the deposit is registered - check spam first. Lost it? Log in at depositprotection.com or contact their support with your tenancy details; they reissue. For insurance schemes (TDS/MyDeposits), ask your landlord for the certificate - they must provide prescribed information anyway.
Timeline it: written request citing the 10-day rule, then the scheme's dispute service, then a letter before action and a county court claim (Money Claim Online handles deposit claims up to £10,000). Save the checker result and all correspondence as evidence.
Within 10 days of the tenancy ending - return in full or an itemised deductions proposal with the agreed balance. Beyond that, the single-claim release or court routes above apply.