Proposals by a select committee to cap deposits paid by tenants at five weeks will play into the hands of rent cheats.

The warning was made as The Sun reported on a leaked copy of the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee‘s report into the Government’s Draft Tenant Fees Bill.

According to the paper, the Committee of MPs will recommend that deposits should be capped at five weeks rent, down from the six weeks proposed by the Government.

Research by the Residential Landlords Association (RLA) has found that 40% of private landlords have faced tenants not paying their final month’s rent in the past three years. Lowering the cap would make it easier for the minority of tenants who cheat landlords out of the rent they owe as it will leave insufficient extra funds to deal with any major problems some tenants leave behind as well.

It is also reported that the committee will call for action to prevent landlords evicting tenants simply for asking for house repairs when this already illegal under the 2015 Deregulation Act.

Commenting, Alan Ward, chair of the RLA said: “Policy makers need to address the problem of tenants who fail to pay their rent with as much energy as tackling rogue landlords. Proposals to lower the cap on deposits paid by tenants will play into the hands of the minority of tenants who cheat those providing housing for them out of the rent they are legitimately owed.”