Almost 70% of all protected tenancy deposits in England are being handled by letting agents, raising concerns that some companies could inadvertently breach deposit registration rules under the Renters’ Rights Act.

Analysis by The Letting Partnership estimates agents handled 2.98 million protected deposits in 2025, accounting for 69.5% of all deposits protected during the year.

Changes introduced on 1st May prevent agents from collecting rent before a tenancy agreement has been signed by all parties, although tenancy deposits can still be taken beforehand.

The accounting and client money protection specialist says the changes could create problems for agencies where deposit registration processes have not been adjusted to reflect the new tenancy timeline.

Genuine risk

Chris Mason (pictured), Chief Operating Officer of The Letting Partnership, says: “The changes introduced under the Renters’ Rights Act may appear relatively minor operationally, but they create a genuine compliance risk for agents if internal processes haven’t been updated accordingly.

“Where agencies are now taking deposits before tenancy agreements are signed, there is a risk that deposit registration deadlines are being triggered earlier than some systems or workflows are designed for.

If those triggers are linked to tenancy start dates rather than receipt of funds, agents could find themselves breaching registration requirements without immediately realising it.”

“If those triggers are linked to tenancy start dates rather than receipt of funds, agents could find themselves breaching registration requirements without immediately realising it.”

The company adds that the risk is likely to increase where there are delays between deposit receipt, agreement signing and tenant move-in under the new tenancy process.

It is therefore advising agents to review their software workflows and accounting controls to ensure deposit registration deadlines are linked to receipt of funds rather than tenancy start dates.