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| photo courtesy of Pierre-Olivier @ Creative Commons |
“Why do you care?” I hear you ask. Well, I don’t know. I suppose I just hate that feeling every time I log on to the DPS website, I’ve got ‘awaiting tenant response’ blinking at me. Call me a pedant, but I just don’t like loose ends.
But hang on, now I think about it, I know exactly why it bothers me. If I’m honest, it’s the fact that this tenant never paid on time in full. Never. Always an excuse, from “dog ate my homework” to “rent? I have to pay rent?”. So having pleaded poverty on many an occasion, it irks me all the more that her £400 is sitting in the DPS’ coffers and the tenant clearly has such a surplus of cash that it’s not worth her claiming back a mere £400. Nice position to be in.
DPS difficulties
The DPS is the scheme I use for all my tenants, and recently I’ve tried for the first time to claim a portion back through the Single Claim Process. I must admit, I haven’t found it easy. Especially if your tenant doesn’t have internet access, it can be a complicated affair and the helpdesk staff don’t seem to be able to compute that a person might not have access to a computer.
I may be doing something wrong, but the instructions on the website seem ambiguous and it’s not clear who has to do what and when. Fellow landlords who have attempted to claim part of the deposit to cover damage have told me that with hindsight, they shouldn’t have bothered and it was more effort than it was worth.
If you’ve claimed for damage through the DPS scheme, how was it for you?
Comments always appreciated.
A nightmare, completely biased in favour of tenants. I use DPS Insurance based scheme now and wouldn't bother with their ADR if i ever have a problem again, I would prefer to take my chances in court.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the post that says the DPS is totally biased in favour of tenants. My experience with them was so bad that it's put me off using them again.
ReplyDeleteTheir website is confusing and ambiguous. I resorted to telephoning them whenever I had a query and didn't know what to do net because the website was thoroughly unhelpful. The customer advisers were OK. At least, they were better than the website.
My tenant was a scheming little minx but fortunately, she moved out without too much trouble and without any malicious damage. We had a lot of to-ing and fro-ing about the deposit but in the end we reached a compromise. I was both astonished and dismayed at how little help I got from DPS.
I had a problem a while back when inspite of glowing testimonials and credit checks I ended up with two tenants who were a pain in getting the rent out of. Eventually when I threatened court action they did a flit owing me one month' rent and were heard to brag about the fact. Fortunately for me they were really scruffy and untidy and left all their DPS correspondence, email details , passwords etc in the house.... So I didn't loose out and they didn't get their deposit back ! At the end of the day it would be their word against mine
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your comments folks. I'm reassured that I'm not the only one.
ReplyDeleteWhich scheme do you recommend instead? My Deposits?
Thanks for sharing your experiences on this
Alison
Alison, personally I use the government's DPS as I have to use a scheme for the deposit. The DPS is free and it has always been hassle free for me. I must agree with the previous comments that you stand a better chance going to court in the event of disputes over damage, rent etc. you only have yo prove ' on the balance of probabilities' that you are in the right to win. Why the British have a pathological fearp of going to court is beyond me as it's simple and fair. The small claims court is cheap and when the tenant gets the notification that yourep not shy and will stand up for yourself they pay up. Threatening bankruptcy is always a good route to follow which has always got me my rent. good luck.
ReplyDelete