Guidance notes to help you complete Dispute Applications and Responses

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1 Guidance notes to help you complete Dispute Applications and Responses These notes are intended to provide guidance to the parties to a dispute when they are completing a Dispute Application or Dispute Response, either online or by post. Please read these notes carefully so that you understand the information you need to provide to TDS and how we will deal with your dispute. This document is for guidance only it is not intended to guarantee the outcome of an adjudication. tel: fax: deposits@tds.gb.com Tenancy Deposit Scheme, PO Box 1255, Hemel Hempstead, Herts, HP1 9GN

2 Overview - Online or Post? TDS accepts Dispute Applications (Applications) and Dispute Responses (Responses) via our website, or by post. Most people find the online process is quicker and easier. You must use one method or the other; it is not possible to complete the process partly online and partly by post. We do not accept Applications or Responses via . Whether you use the online or postal process, we will ask you for: Information about you, including your address, contact phone number and bank details so we can make payment to you at the end of the dispute; Information about the other parties to the dispute, including their contact details, so we can ask them for their version of events; The evidence you wish the adjudicator to consider. Please make sure you have all this information available before you start the process. We will correspond with you and the other parties by where possible, so it is important that you provide your details and those of the other parties if you have them. Online Applications and Responses Our website will guide you through the process of submitting an Application or Response online. You should start by locating your tenancy deposit protection record via: 'Is my deposit protected? at Submitting an Application or Response online is a two part process. We cannot process the case unless you complete both parts. Part 1 Complete the online form Part 2 Upload the evidence you want the adjudicator to see Part 1 The online form You will find that some of the fields will be pre-populated from the information we already hold. Your details When we ask you to provide personal information, including your current , postal address, telephone number and bank details, we will not disclose these to the other parties to the dispute. We will only use this information to contact you and to arrange any payment due to you at the end of the dispute. You must provide valid bank account details so we can make any payment due to you at the end of the dispute. Our preferred method of contacting you is by , so please provide us with an address if you have one. You should also provide us with a phone number. Your postal address should be the property where you are living now, not the tenancy address. The details of the other parties to the dispute We will not be able to deal with the dispute if we have no way of contacting the other parties, so you need to give us their contact details too. As a minimum, we need to know who is named on the tenancy agreement, including any letting agent involved, and their Guidance notes for the completion of Dispute Application and Dispute Response Forms 2

3 address or phone numbers. If you do not have an address, please provide a postal contact in addition to a phone number. Dispute details Please use this part of the online form to provide TDS with the details about the part of the deposit that remains in dispute. You will be asked to provide information about: The full amount of the deposit (as stated in the tenancy agreement); How much of the deposit is in dispute (this may be less than, but not more than, the full amount of the deposit); The total value of the claim being made (this may exceed the deposit); Details of any part of the deposit already paid to the landlord, tenant or agent. You will then be asked to provide a summary of the reasons for the dispute. This is your opportunity to explain what the dispute is about and to point the adjudicator towards the evidence you wish them to consider. The adjudicator will not try to work out what the claim is about from the evidence, so it is important that you set out the matters in dispute clearly. The information that you provide in this section will be available to the other parties to the dispute. You also need to be able to show that you have taken reasonable steps to resolve the dispute before sending it to TDS. The information that you provide in this section will be available to the other parties to the dispute. If it appears that the parties have made no effort to resolve the dispute, we may ask for this to be done before we decide whether we can continue with the dispute. When you have completed the information provided in Part 1 of the online process, you need to move onto Part 2 in order to complete your Application or Response. Part 2 upload your evidence In Part 2 of the online process, you are invited to upload the evidence you wish the adjudicator to take into account. All of the evidence you provide will be available to the other parties to the dispute. You are responsible for the content you upload. Please make sure that you read the instructions on screen carefully so that you complete the process in full. Once you have completed the process, make sure that you check your submission again to ensure that everything you want the adjudicator to consider has been uploaded in full and is clear. In particular, check that a tenancy agreement has been provided; the adjudicator needs to know the parties obligations under the contract and it is likely that the outcome of the dispute will be affected if no tenancy agreement is provided. Postal Applications and Responses The information you are asked to provide if you chose to complete an Application or Response by post is the same as for the online process detailed above. The postal forms are however divided into 3 parts: Part 1 Personal Information and Payment Instructions Part 2 Parties to the Dispute Part 3 Details of the Dispute Guidance notes for the completion of Dispute Application and Dispute Response Forms 3

4 Make sure you complete all three parts before submitting the form. If you do not do so, there may be a delay in dealing with the dispute. Any evidence you wish to submit needs to be included in paper form with the Application or Response. Please do not send us information on discs or memory devices. Forms and supporting evidence should be sent by post to TDS Ltd, PO Box 613, Eastleigh, SO50 0JJ. Part 3 of the Dispute Application Form and Dispute Response Form(s) and any other information you send to support your case will be put into the online portal and will be available for the other party(ies) to see. If there is any information you do not wish to be seen, you must remove or cover it before sending it to TDS. The adjudicator cannot take into account information which you do not agree to share with the other party(ies) to the dispute. If you are completing a Response by post, you may wish to view the evidence provided by the Applicant first. You will find details of how to do this in the letter or we send you when we invite you to provide your Response. Even if you think you have seen all the evidence before, you might find it useful to check it again so you can see what the other parties are relying to support their claim. Points you need to be aware of these apply whether you have used the online or postal processes General TDS cannot make an award in excess of the deposit. However, it is important that you tell us if the total amount claimed exceeds the deposit. When you submit the Application or Response to TDS, you agree to TDS dealing with your dispute, to sharing information about it with the other parties to the dispute, and that the adjudication decision will be final and binding. Any undisputed part of the deposit should be returned in accordance with any agreement reached between the parties within 10 days of that agreement. We can only adjudicate once on any deposit so it is important that you tell us if any agreed part of the deposit has not been returned. Deposit holders should not make any deductions for items such as rent arrears or check out fees without express written agreement between the parties, even if such deductions are allowed by the tenancy agreement. Unless the deposit holder can demonstrate agreement, the tenant will still be entitled to dispute the deductions. It greatly assists our understanding of the dispute if the deposit holder is able to provide a Deposit Reconciliation Statement showing any deductions already made by agreement between the parties. The documentation you are able to provide is vital to our understanding of the dispute. We will not visit the property or take oral evidence. We rely on the documentary evidence you send us. We will not generally contact you to ask for further information, so you must make sure you include all the information you wish us to take into account. Guidance notes for the completion of Dispute Application and Dispute Response Forms 4

5 We do not return the documents to you, so please provide us with legible copies rather than originals if you are using our postal service. The following points are particularly important in the adjudication process: If there were previous tenancies with the same tenants at the same property, please tell us and, if possible, provide copies of the previous tenancy agreements. We will not take into account the contents of any documents marked Without Prejudice unless a written waiver is provided. Comprehensive check in inventories and check out reports are generally the best evidence to demonstrate the condition of a property and its contents at the start and end of the tenancy. If the claim involves rent arrears, a statement of rent account should be provided, showing a contemporaneous record of rent due and received throughout the tenancy, and any periods for which the rent was not paid. Photographic and video evidence can be useful in support of other documentary evidence, but is unlikely to be decisive as stand-alone evidence. If you intend to submit photographic or video evidence, please refer to our further guidance on the Use of photographs, videos and DVDs before doing so. Payments and Personal Information We will generally pay any award due to you by electronic bank transfer. If there is more than one landlord or tenant, we will make payment of any award due equally to all tenants or landlords named on the tenancy agreement, unless the parties request otherwise, in writing. If you wish payment to be made to an overseas account, you need to let us know. If you wish payment to be made to an account in joint names, we will process the request as we receive it. It is not necessary for joint tenants or landlords with joint bank accounts to complete separate Personal Information and Payment Instructions, but it is the responsibility of the party completing this part of the form to ensure that the joint landlord or tenant is aware of the request to pay to a joint account. TDS will not accept responsibility for payments to a joint account where one party named on the account was unaware of the request. Unless payment is to be made to an account held jointly by joint tenants or landlords, all tenants, landlords and agents must complete a Personal Information and Payment Instructions Form via the portal It is your responsibility to tell us of any changes to your personal details during the course of the dispute ie before the case is published and reports issued. If you wish a payment due to you to be made to an overseas account, the payee will be responsible for all bank charges from both the remitting and receiving banks. We make all payments by bank transfer unless you ask to be paid by cheque. Please ensure you have provided accurate details (bank name, account no., sort code and account holder s name to allow us to process the payment). Guidance notes for the completion of Dispute Application and Dispute Response Forms 5

6 We reserve the right to charge a small administration fee of (Inc VAT) if we have to arrange subsequent or additional payments in the following circumstances: - if incorrect payment details are supplied and a replacement payment is required; We aim to process all payments within 10 working days of the adjudication being finalised. Understanding how the adjudication process works We suggest you read the following guidance, available on our website at These documents will give you the information you need to understand how the adjudication process works and also the limitations of what we are able to consider. What is the Tenancy Deposit Scheme? A guide to deposits, disputes and damages How to present your case to the TDS adjudicator How does a TDS adjudicator divide a disputed deposit? The progress of a dispute In particular, you should be aware of the following: We are only able to adjudicate once in relation to each deposit. We are unable to adjudicate on issues which have already been decided by a court. If any of the parties indicates that they have taken, or intend to take, court action we will assume that they do not consent to us resolving the dispute and we will not be able to deal with it. If court proceedings involve the deposit, we will guide you through the procedures you need to follow in order for us to be able to release the deposit. We are also unable to adjudicate on counter-claim issues as part of the deposit dispute. If it appears that a counter-claim issue is being relied upon by one of the parties (usually a tenant), we will try to bring it to their attention before the case passes to adjudication, so that they understand that we cannot take the matter into account. If you think that a counter-claim issue is important to your case, you should seek independent advice about taking the whole matter to court, or pursuing the counter-claim issue separately through another channel. Getting consent to adjudicate - what you need to know If any party to the tenancy agreement refuses consent to ADR, we will not be able to deal with the dispute; If any of the parties fail to indicate whether or not they consent to ADR, we are able to imply consent and carry on, as long as none of the other parties object; if we are not able to proceed, we will let all the parties know as soon as we can. The landlord and tenant will still be able to take the dispute to court if they wish to. If they change their minds, we will still be able to deal with the dispute as long as consent is given within 3 months of the end of the tenancy. If you need a more detailed explanation, please refer to our further guidance in Deposit disputes involving joint tenants - what you need to know Guidance notes for the completion of Dispute Application and Dispute Response Forms 6

7 If you wish to find out what is happening with your dispute, you can find out by going to Check the progress of a dispute area of our website. We aim to complete our adjudications within 28 days of receiving the information the parties send us. Any timescales you need to meet for submitting evidence will be explained in the communications we send you. Tel: Fax: Web: Guidance notes for the completion of Dispute Application and Dispute Response Forms 7