‘Neglected private tenants need a deposit protection scheme’

The issue was placed in the spotlight this week when tenants and house buyers were unable to contact Sarnia Estate Agents, who have been listed on the Guernsey Registry strike-off list, with some fearing they would lose their deposits.

A deposit protection scheme such as the one in place in Jersey would mean that landlords must, by law, place tenants’ deposits into a third party account with certain time restrictions and fees applicable.

Deputy Brehaut is strongly in favour of introducing some form of protection.

‘We hear on a regular basis from landlords, but we don’t often hear the voice of the tenant and clearly they need more protection than they have now. It’s families and young people that are most affected by this lack of policy.

‘Following the last election I met former Housing staff, that are now part of Employment & Social Security, and wrote a paper on our need for a rent deposit protection scheme. During the merger after the election, former members of staff moved on and that is still at draft stage.

‘Hopefully that work will become part of introducing the scheme,’ he said.

A rent deposit protection scheme was one of the recommendations made in the KPMG housing review, which was released at the beginning of this year.

It has existed in Jersey since 2015 using a third party company in the UK called mydeposits, which hold the amounts in separate bank accounts.

‘I spoke to Deputy Sam Mezec [minister for Children and Housing] on Wednesday night and I hope to meet him in a matter of weeks. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel, we would look to import a similar model to the one which has been working in Jersey,’ he said.

Deputy Brehaut said that other issues with the private rental sector have been a concern for a number of years and Environmental Health is also looking into compiling a report on the nature of private rental properties available on the island.

‘You only have to walk around to see properties for rent advertised with a sign in the window, there are mostly legitimate landlords, but there lots of landlords who are not legitimate,’ he said.

The Guernsey Private Residential Landlords’ Association (GPRLA) was formed in 2007 to represent the views of landlords in the private residential letting sector.

‘What you’ll find is that the good landlords come forward to be a part of the GPRLA, but you don’t see the bad ones, of course,’ said Deputy Brehaut.

‘We hear of people who find their rental housing is not fit to live in and then have their deposits taken away and are left with £30 to live off for the rest of the month.

‘We’ve focused a lot on social housing and GHA in the last few decades but we have neglected the private rental sector.’

A spokesman for the Department for Strategic Policy, Performance and Population in Jersey said the scheme was designed to work for both landlords and tenants.

‘The scheme is not only there to protect against “rogue” landlords. It tempers bad practice on both sides.

‘For example, a tenant may withhold their final month’s rent out of fear that they will not get their deposit back.

‘Likewise, a landlord may make deductions from the tenant for things which are actually fair wear and tear, which the tenant is not responsible for.’