Safedepostis

SafeDeposits Scotland reaches £80m milestone




Deposit protection company SafeDeposits Scotland has reached a personal milestone of £80m of tenancy deposits.

The company came into being when Scottish government legislation was introduced to protect tenant deposits.

SafeDeposits Scotland is the largest of the three approved schemes and the only one to be based in Scotland.

It accounts for almost 60% of the market and currently holds over 114,000 individual deposits.

When it launched five years ago, the company’s average deposit amount was £575.48.

This figure has since increased to £691.30, a rise of 20%.

The company has paid out over £130m in deposits since its creation.

“Five years on from the introduction of legislated tenancy deposits north of the border, SafeDeposits Scotland has established itself as the clear market leader,” said Victoria Nixon, operations manager at SafeDeposits Scotland (pictured above).

“Getting to this point is down – in no small part – to the way that SafeDeposits Scotland was set up.

“There are still some landlords who may not be aware of their legal obligation to join a scheme or be reticent to join one, so it is our duty, as an industry, to show non-compliant landlords the benefit of deposit protection.”

SafeDeposits also provides free alternative dispute resolution services when there are disagreements between tenants and landlords.

The company has arbitrated in over 9,609 cases, with over 95% of deposits returned without going to adjudication.

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