Earlier this week, our partner, mydeposits launched the biggest overhaul of its insured-backed deposit protection service since the scheme was introduced nearly two decades ago, moving it onto a new technology platform and introducing a revised membership model for landlords and letting agents.

The government-approved deposit protection provider says the changes are designed to simplify administration and streamline deposit management. The insured-backed scheme migrated to Total Property, the platform that already powers mydeposits' custodial deposit protection service, bringing both custodial and insured-backed protections together in one place. The updated platform provides a more modern, user-friendly system for protecting and managing deposits.

The changes also include a new annual membership structure. With one simple annual renewal date to remember, members can purchase the number of deposit allocations they need each year. Each allocation stays with the member’s account, so it can be reused whenever one deposit protection ends and a new tenancy begins. As part of the updates, mydeposits have reduced their maximum price per deposit to just £22.00 per year including VAT. With the new pricing structure, the more deposit allocations members purchase, the lower the cost. NRLA members also benefit from an additional one third discount on insured-backed protection which will be applied automatically when stating NRLA membership number.  

Alongside the membership changes, Total Property introduces a new end-of-tenancy negotiation process. Landlords and agents can upload evidence and propose deductions directly through the platform. Tenants can either accept the proposal or submit a counter-offer, and if an agreement cannot be reached, the case can be referred to mydeposits' free award-winning alternative dispute resolution service.

Existing insured-backed members have been moved to the new platform automatically and there is no need to re-register existing deposits as their protection will remain in place. Members also have access to step-by-step guidance, support resources and a pricing calculator to help them understand the new membership model.

CEO Eddie Hooker says bringing the insured and custodial schemes together has been a long-term objective for the business.

"This is our biggest investment in insured deposit protection," he says. "We have rethought not just the way members pay for insured deposit protection, but the entire user experience, creating a platform that is simpler, more flexible and designed around how landlords, agents and tenants interact with deposit protection today."

For more information on the Total Property platform and how it works, visit the mydeposits website.  

Established in 2007, mydeposits has more than 400,000 members and protects over 1.1 million tenancy deposits worth more than £1.3 billion. It operates government-approved tenancy deposit protection schemes across England and Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Jersey.

‍