The Tenancy Deposit Scheme goes into a new financial year next week having protected over £2bn in tenants deposits since the scheme started in 2007, despite 17,134 tenancies ending in dispute during that time.

Through well over 4,000 letting agents’ branches, the Scheme currently protects 1.5m tenants, housed through close to a million tenancies.

From next month, smaller lettings businesses, those with less than 50 tenancies, will see their annual subscriptions fall from £750 to £500 a year. This reduction will result in a high proportion of firms paying less than £6 for each new tenancy registered.

The Tenancy Deposit Scheme’s chief executive, Steve Harriott, said: “We are going into 2011-2012 with the Tenancy Deposit Scheme in the strongest possible position to provide its members with competitive rates, a more focused customer service and increasing standards of efficiency.”

Meanwhile, mydeposits.co.uk, another tenancy deposit protection scheme, has just announced that it has now protected over £1bn worth of deposits on behalf of tenants.

The company now protects around 30,000 deposits on behalf of landlords every month and is the claims to be the only tenancy deposit protection scheme specifically designed for both landlords and letting agents wanting to manage the deposit themselves.

Eddie Hooker, chief executive at mydeposits.co.uk, commented: “my|deposits has gone from strength to strength since we launched over four years ago, firmly expelling the myth that landlords and agents can’t be trusted with holding ‘client money’. We have adequately protected deposits for more than 1m tenancies across England and Wales, valued at more than £1bn and counting.”