Letting or estate agents/landlords breaching the Tenant Fees Act 2019 - Find a freedom of information request

1. How many open/ongoing investigations do you have into letting or estate agents/landlords breaching the Tenant Fees Act 2019 (i.e. prohibited fees / excessive deposits)?

a. Please detail what the alleged breaches are and include the amounts involved ( i.e. check in or check out fees, inventory fees, credit check fees etc)

2. Between June 2019 and June 2022

a. How many complaints did you receive about prohibited tenant fees or related issues?

Please provide a yearly breakdown for year 1, year 2 and year 3 and details of the complaints, including amounts requested.

b. How many complaints did you receive about excessive deposits? Please provide a yearly breakdown for year 1, year 2 and year 3 and details of the complaints, including amounts requested.

c. Over the same time-frame - how many breaches were there of the Tenant Fees act? Please provide a yearly breakdown for year 1, year 2 and year 3 and details of the breaches, including amounts requested.

3. Over the same timeframe - how many notices have been issued?

Please provide a yearly breakdown for year 1, year 2 and year 3

a. What was the outcome (paid/withdrawn/ appealed)

b. Did the complainant get their money back?

I can confirm that the information requested is held by Lincolnshire County Council. I have detailed below the information that is being released to you.

1.None

a.N/a

2.a. Year 1 – 4 complaints, details below:

• £50 application fee, per person

• Various fees - £200 for references, £150 application fee, £100 guarantors

• Application fee – amount not stated

• £40 landlord references fee Year 2 – 6 complaints, details below:

• £288 – joining fee for ‘no deposit scheme’

• £60 reference fee, £198 inventory and other matters, £100 check out fee

• £125 (£175 couple) application fee, £60 guarantor fee, 3% credit card fee

• £150 call out fee • £50 application fee

• £30 vacating tenant fee, to change the council tax bill to another name Year 3 – 1 complaint, details below:

• £50 administration fee detailed on traders website

b. Year 1 – 0

Year 2 - 0

Year 3 – 1 complaint, details below:

• Holding deposit in excess of one weeks rent – amount not stated.

c. Nothing further to what has already been provided in 2b and 2c above.

3. None. In line with our enforcement policy, the first approach is to investigate the complaint to determine if justified and then to advise the business, where required.

Further complaints of the same or similar nature may result in enforcement action.

a. N/a

b. N/a