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The landlord had served a section 21 notice and commenced possession proceedings.
The tenant defended the claim because the prescribed information required by The Housing (Tenancy Deposits) Prescribed Information Order 2007 had yet to be given. The landlord had protected the deposit with MyDeposits and only provided the certificate supplied by the scheme.
This certificate makes it clear that it alone is not sufficient for the prescribed information order and that other information must be provided (for example, what to do at the end of the tenancy if the landlord or agent cannot be contacted and also does not explain what things the landlord will retain the tenancy deposit against).
In defending the section 21 possession claim, the tenant also sought the usual three times deposit compensation (since this case, the penalty is changed to between one and three times the deposit). The landlord's claim for possession was dismissed, and the landlord was ordered to pay the tenant three times the deposit.
We bang on about prescribed information because the consequences are real. Protecting the deposit is not enough; the prescribed information under The Housing (Tenancy Deposits) Prescribed Information Order 2007 must also be given. The penalty for getting this wrong remains between one and three times the deposit.
In England: the Renters' Rights Act 2025 has extended the deposit and prescribed-information requirements into a possession gateway for most possession orders, not just the now-abolished section 21 route. A court may only make a possession order where the deposit is held in an authorised scheme, the initial scheme requirements have been complied with, and the prescribed information has been provided. Limited exceptions apply, for example, Ground 7A and Ground 14, and where the deposit issues have been resolved. In practice, the same missed prescribed information that defeated possession in Baafi v Mapp can still defeat most possession claims today.
In Wales: the Renters' Rights Act 2025 does not apply. Possession operates under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 framework, but the deposit prescribed information requirements still apply to relevant tenancies and should be checked separately.
As a rule of thumb, if you have fewer than 10 pages of prescribed deposit information, something is probably wrong, and you should double-check what you are giving. For the DPS custodial scheme, the rules (which must be attached) run to 7 pages and cover only some of the information requirements.
Our Tenancy Builder automatically includes all prescribed information.