Deputy CEO Ali Marquis said that deposits should be held by third party specialists, who would arbitrate over disputes and provide a resolution within a fixed timeframe.
“Rental deposits are historically a problem here in Guernsey, both for landlords and tenants, which is something we brought to the attention of candidates in the run-up to last year’s election,” said Mrs Marquis.
“Our latest report on the subject shows that in 90 percent of enquiries in 2020, the client would have benefitted from a local rental deposit scheme. It’s clear that the problem is still very real.”
Pictured: A large majority of tenants and landlords who came to Citizens Advice did so because the deposit was in dispute.
Most of those who come to Citizens Advice following protracted deposit disputes are tenants. “One client told us they believe the system is heavily biased towards landlords and that tenants can be held to ransom,” states a report into the issue.
“Another client, a landlord, was nervous about meeting the tenant and explaining why they were deducting money from the deposit.”
Mrs Marquis added: “A suitable deposit scheme could help reduce such fear and uncertainty for tenants and landlords.”
“In three months, we had 20 clients who were either homeless or about to lose their home”
Enquiries to Citizens Advice since the start of 2021 have also revealed a wider, worrying trend, as more islanders seek advice on critical housing situations.
Express has recently delved into the housing crisis on our doorstep, with demand – especially for rental properties – massively outstripping supplyand the cost of finding somewhere to live going through the roof.
“In the first quarter we received 20 separate enquiries from clients who were either homeless or about to lose their home,” said Mrs Marquis.
“We also gave advice to 13 tenants regarding eviction proceedings. These figures are higher than normal and suggest that access to housing is a growing concern for islanders.”
Pictured: Analysis by Citizens Advice, using the Jersey scheme as a benchmark, suggests that a suitable deposit scheme would have helped for a vast majority of cases where the deposit was in dispute.
The background to calls for a rent deposit scheme
Guernsey has no laws relating to deposits when renting property, whereas the UK (2007) and Jersey (2015) have both introduced specific schemes with deposits held by third party specialists.
A suitable deposit scheme, with set deadlines for repayment, would help for cases where the landlord appears to withhold the deposit for unreasonably long time periods.
Citizens Advice analysed 51 relevant and discrete cases from 2019 and 2020 to establish whether a local deposit scheme would have been likely to help. The criteria chosen were: would the client be likely to receive money due with less delay, less inconvenience, anxiety, and/or a better sense of fairness?
In around 9 out of 10 cases, the answer was a resounding ‘yes’.
Pictured top: Citizens Advice Guernsey Deputy CEO Ali Marquis. Citizens Advice Guernsey gives free, confidential and impartial advice on any subject to around 4,000 islanders each year, which is around eight percent of the adult population.