You did not receive prescribed information for your deposit - what can you do?

What the law says

Section 213(5) of the Housing Act 2004 requires the landlord to give the tenant prescribed information within 30 days of receiving the deposit. The detail is set out in Article 2 of the Housing (Tenancy Deposits) (Prescribed Information) Order 2007. It includes the scheme name and contact details, the deposit amount, the property address, the parties' contact details, how the deposit is returned, what happens in a dispute, and the circumstances in which deductions can be made.

Section 214 of the Housing Act 2004 gives the court claim where the landlord failed to comply with section 213. The court must order a penalty of one to three times the deposit. Section 215 restricts the landlord's ability to rely on Section 21 while deposit requirements remain unresolved. A certificate alone is not always enough: the prescribed information must contain the required content and must be served on time.

Step-by-step: what to do

1. Search your emails, tenancy pack, deposit certificate, scheme documents, and any agent portal for the prescribed information.

2. Check whether the document includes the scheme details, deposit amount, property address, party names and addresses, return procedure, dispute procedure, and deduction circumstances.

3. Check the dates. The information had to be given within 30 days of the landlord receiving the deposit.

4. Ask the landlord in writing for proof of service if they say it was sent.

5. If the information was late, missing, or materially incomplete, gather the tenancy agreement, bank payment, scheme record, and messages for a section 214 claim.

Common mistakes to avoid

Do not assume protection and prescribed information are the same thing. The landlord must do both. Do not accept a scheme certificate as complete unless it contains all required prescribed information or is served with the missing details. Do not ignore joint-tenancy signatures: service problems can arise where only one joint tenant received the information. Do not wait until the Section 21 hearing to look for the paperwork.

• Check content and timing, not only whether the deposit was protected.
• Ask for proof of service.
• Keep the original tenancy pack.
• Check every replacement tenancy or change of the landlord.

Related guidance

• Deposit checker
  Check protection, prescribed information, and Section 21 consequences.
• Prescribed information not received
  Detailed guide to the required information and claim route.
• Deposit protection guide
  The 30-day rule, schemes, and prescribed information.
• Deposit problems and Section 21
  How deposit breaches affect legacy Section 21 notices.

Common questions

You did not receive prescribed information for your deposit - what can you do?

The landlord must give you prescribed information about your tenancy deposit within 30 days of receiving the deposit. This is separate from protecting the money in a scheme. If the landlord protected the deposit but did not serve the prescribed information correctly, that is still a breach of section 213(5) of the Housing Act 2004. You can claim a penalty of one to three times the deposit under section 214, and the breach can also affect a legacy Section 21 notice.

Is prescribed information different from the deposit certificate?

Yes. A certificate can form part of the prescribed information, but the full Article 2 information must be given within 30 days.

Can I claim if the deposit was protected on time?

Yes. Missing or late prescribed information is a separate section 213 breach and can trigger the section 214 penalty.

Does late prescribed information fix the problem?

Late service can help the landlord with future Section 21 restrictions, but it does not erase the original section 214 compensation claim.

What if I cannot remember receiving it?

Ask the landlord for proof of service and check your records. In court, the landlord must show compliance if you dispute service.