John Blackwood: Must we burden the law abiding with red tape?

Following a period of consultation, which closed last week, the Scottish Government is now considering responses received before granting approval to the first scheme to be up and running in Scotland.

At a time where the private rented sector is already heavily regulated, will another system of regulation work and, more importantly, will it protect the interests of the most vulnerable tenants at the hands of some of our worst landlords?

Arguably, the Scottish Association of Landlords represents the best of the sector, who pride themselves in offering high quality accommodation that tenants want to rent in the knowledge that they are renting from reputable landlords.

However, I have to question the wisdom of the Scottish Government in light of the fact that many landlords already avoid their legal requirement to register with their local authority and I have to ask who will take action against those landlords who refuse to hand over tenants’ deposits to one of the approved national schemes?

It is always easy to regulate those landlords who do register and comply, but it is not those ones that we need worry about and need to regulate – it is those whom we know that don’t comply with regulations, repair their properties and, worst still, illegally evict tenants that we need to tackle.

If any system of regulation is to be introduced, it needs to be properly enforced and that can only happen if both landlords and tenants have confidence in the system. Representing landlords who will ensure that they comply is important in emphasising the growing need for the good landlords in Scotland to offer accommodation to tenants who will not be able to find that anywhere else. Sadly, too often more regulation only seems to drive out the good landlords already dismayed by the increasing burden of red tape and lack of proper enforcement.

With a lack of proper investment in the social housing sector, and young people finding it increasingly difficult to afford a deposit to buy a house or flat, the private rented sector is going to be in greater demand as pressure increases for landlords to provide accommodation.

With the private rented sector on the increase, we need to ensure that only the best landlords out there are letting property and rogue landlords are pushed out the sector altogether.

Regulation for regulation’s sake might win votes for politicians but does little to protect the people they are designed to help and, too often, only pushes out those who already do a good job.

Meanwhile, anyone affected should consider the following questions:

• What will the regulations mean for landlords?

Once a tenancy deposit scheme is approved, any tenancy deposit accepted by a landlord must be deposited with an approved scheme within 30 working days of the commencement of a tenancy.

At the same time, the landlord must ensure that key information is provided to the tenant, including details about the amount of the deposit and the location of the scheme where it is being held.

The deposit will then be kept by the scheme administrator in an account maintained for the purpose of holding tenancy deposits until they are repaid. The landlord must also provide proof of registration with the local authority when the deposit is paid over.

These duties relating to tenancy deposit regulations will not apply until an approved scheme is implemented.

• Which landlords must comply with the regulations?

Every landlord who receives a deposit and who is required to register in the local authority register of landlords, in accordance with the Antisocial Behaviour etc (Scotland) Act 2004 (landlord registration), will need to comply with the Tenancy Deposit Schemes (Scotland) Regulations 2011.

This includes landlords of assured and short assured tenancies, university accommodation, as well as various other types of occupancy arrangement.

• John Blackwood is director of the Scottish Association of Landlords