ask in writing · same-day dispatch
Get your deposit back starting with a dated letter
WhatsApp messages get ignored; a posted letter starts a clock. Upload your deposit request as a PDF and we print it, envelope it and hand it to Royal Mail, from £1.79, with a dispatch-confirmation email recording the date your landlord was asked in writing.
Why the first move is a letter, not another text
Every route to your deposit runs through the same question: when did you ask for it back, and what exactly did you ask for? The scheme’s dispute service wants it, a court wants it, and a landlord who was hoping you would drift away is told, on paper, that you will not. A posted letter with a dated dispatch record answers the question before it is asked. Text messages and calls are easy to dispute; a letter you can produce, with the date it went in the post, is not.
What your deposit letter should include
The deposit request checklist
- The property address and your tenancy dates
- The deposit amount and, if you know it, the scheme holding it
- The amount you expect back, and why any proposed deductions are wrong
- A reasonable deadline to respond, 14 days is common
- What you will do next if there is no reply: scheme dispute or court
Attach the evidence that does the arguing: check-out inventory, dated photos, receipts. Sign it, save it as one PDF, keep a copy.
How PostOwl sends it
Upload your signed PDF, type the landlord or agent’s address, choose first or second class, and pay by card or Apple Pay. No account, no subscription. Order before the cutoff on a working day and your letter is printed, enveloped and handed to Royal Mail the same day, followed by a dispatch-confirmation email: dated proof of dispatch. A one-page letter costs £1.79 second class or £2.69 first class, and your PDF is permanently deleted after dispatch.
If the deadline passes
Protected deposit: open a dispute with the scheme, attach your letter and its dispatch confirmation, and let the free adjudication do its work. Unprotected deposit, or a landlord who will not engage: the next step is a letter before action, the formal warning courts expect to see before a money claim. Renting disputes often escalate alongside other paperwork; if you have been handed notice in return, our Section 21 guide covers how notices have to be served.
Tenancy deposit FAQs
How long does a landlord have to return my deposit?+
Once you and the landlord agree how much comes back, protected deposits should be returned within 10 days. The arguments happen before that point, which is why the first step is a dated written request setting out the amount you expect and why. If there is no reply, the deposit scheme's free dispute service, or ultimately court, counts from a paper trail.
Can my landlord just keep part of it for cleaning or damage?+
Only with evidence. Deductions must reflect actual loss, and fair wear and tear is not damage. If your deposit is protected, you can dispute deductions through the scheme's free alternative dispute resolution, where the landlord has to prove each deduction, not the other way round. Check-in and check-out inventories and dated photos decide most cases.
What if my deposit was never protected?+
Landlords in England and Wales must put an assured shorthold tenancy deposit into a government-backed scheme (DPS, TDS or mydeposits) within 30 days and give you the prescribed information. If that did not happen, a court can order the deposit returned and award compensation of between one and three times the deposit. Mention this in your letter; it concentrates minds. Citizens Advice or Shelter can help with the claim itself.
My landlord is ignoring me. What next?+
If the deposit is protected, raise a dispute with the scheme; it is free and the landlord cannot simply sit it out. If it is not protected, or the scheme route does not fit, the escalation is a letter before action giving a deadline, then a money claim in the county court. Your first dated request letter is what shows the court you asked properly.
Asked properly, on paper, today
Send it now → from £1.79This page is general information, not legal advice. Deposit rules described here apply to assured shorthold tenancies in England and Wales; Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own schemes. PostOwl is an independent printing and posting service.