TDS – Tenancy Deposit Scheme Reviews 4,075

The customer service made my experience great. From the start of my dispute till the end, they communicated efficiently with me. Denise is really outstanding, spoke with her and she made the call and my morning good.

Really commend TDS to anyone.

Very to the point, efficient and a lovely tone of conversation.

Dan was prompt in his responses, clear in his advice and was able to assist with the matter in hand.

Very good service and professional

I’m excited to share my happy experience. It was absolutely easy to get done. Great service 👍

I phoned to make a quick enquiry and McKenzie was very helpful in providing an equally quick answer. He was in high spirits despite it being 5:15 pm and I was grateful to have encountered such a delightful person when I felt drained from the day myself.

If there is option 0, then I will give TDS a “0” star!
Very disappointing experience with the dispute process. I submitted extensive evidence showing that a heating defect had been reported to the landlord for months and that the landlord confirmed in writing that no further action would be taken. Despite acknowledging that the maintenance issue existed and caused inconvenience, the adjudication still awarded the entire deposit to the landlord because the property was not officially declared “uninhabitable” by a professional authority.

This creates an unrealistic burden on tenants, who are rarely aware that they must involve a local authority just to protect their deposit in a dispute. It also feels unfair that the scheme cannot consider landlord breaches or counterclaims when assessing the situation.

After months of preparing evidence and responding to the dispute, losing the entire deposit was extremely discouraging. The process appears heavily weighted toward contractual rent claims rather than a balanced assessment of landlord and tenant responsibilities

Just had a really good experience with the TDS scheme. We requested an API code for an integration with Goodlord and within less than 24 hours, we had a full reply with everything we needed and the integration was setup, Liam from the API team was very helpful.

My partner spoke to a lovely individual yesterday around 10.40am, unfortunately she can not recall the lady’s name but she was very helpful and polite. Thank you for your help!

Excellent customer service. I truly appreciate the help and support provided by TDS experts.
Thanks Sanaa Akhtar(Customer Support Advisor) to help me in reopen dispute request.

I submitted a full response with supporting evidence via the TDS portal within the required timeframe. I even logged out and back in to confirm it had saved — and it had. What I wasn't told is that the portal requires a second confirmation step to complete the submission. Without completing that step, your response is treated as a non-submission, regardless of what's sitting in the system.
The adjudicator decided in the landlord's favour on the basis that I hadn't responded at all. When I contacted TDS, their own customer service team acknowledged my evidence was visible on the portal — but said the dispute couldn't be reopened. I submitted a formal review request on grounds of error of fact and procedural unfairness. That was rejected too.
The two-step process is not clearly explained at any point in the portal journey. There is no warning before the deadline passes, no notification that your submission is incomplete, and no opportunity to remedy it. TDS's position is that this is your problem, not theirs.
I've now had to pursue the matter through a Letter Before Action and potentially small claims court — at significant time and cost — because of a process failure that could easily have been avoided with clearer guidance or a simple "your submission is incomplete" alert.
If you're a tenant going through a TDS dispute, read the portal instructions extremely carefully and make absolutely certain you have completed every step before your deadline. Do not assume that uploading evidence is sufficient on its own.

They are very professional and detail-oriented. They make sure customers fully understand the information and that everything is carried out correctly. I spoke with Paul, and he was extremely professional and helpful. Thank you very much

They listen attentively and try to give you the best help and advise. They give you hope that though the landlords may take away all your deposit but certainly not without a good fight which they help you through

Great service, friendly and efficient.

Detailed explanation of services and benefits to me in right language with patients

Friendly staff.

The service i received from the young man was second to none and i received my deposit today thankyou

This indeed is a trustable organisation. They actually are a custodian of tenants rights. I had a bad experience dealing with landlord who wanted to keep full deposit by exaggerated damage claims which were in fact normal wear and tear. I was able to put forth my side of story and share the actual picture. Even though the landlord tried to play with the loopholes, TDS helped me to get my entire deposit back. The process is slow but stay assured that it will work as an unbiased body and favour the tenants if they are being cheated. Always remember to keep in touch with TDS via call or email while you have an active case to keep them updated until there is a decision and never engage with the landlord meanwhile this may jeopardise the case. Trust the process, trust them the wait will be worth it!

I am formally recording my dissatisfaction with the adjudication decision. The adjudicator failed to consider the primary evidence and the documented sequence of negotiations that prove a varied agreement was in place.

Negotiated Waiver of Fees: The Landlord and Agent initially requested £595 for remarketing, which they reduced and eventually waived entirely after we argued that 6 months of the tenancy were completed. This proves the parties were actively varying the contract terms.

Retraction of "One-Month" Agreement: Following this, the Agent informed us we could vacate with one month's notice. We provided this notice on 07/01/26.

Arbitrary Constraints & Contradictions: The Agent then claimed notice could only be given on the 31st of the month. They explicitly asked us to vacate on 28/02/26 which still aligns with a one-month notice period yet they used this arbitrary "31st" rule to backtrack on the prior agreement and demand two months' notice instead.

Disregard of Written Confirmation (£869.94 Rent Award): The adjudicator ignored the Agent's clear written statement: "The landlord is in agreement for you to leave earlier than legally contracted." The TDS has validated a bad-faith retraction of a negotiated settlement.

Betterment & Unsubstantiated Damages: The adjudicator awarded redecoration fees after an 18-month tenancy (illegal betterment) and awarded £185.00 for damages that the landlord’s own check-out report failed to record.

The adjudicator systematically favored the Landlord's claims while ignoring the documented trail of the Agent's concessions. I am now escalating this to the County Court and the Property Ombudsman.