There have been a number of County Court judgments on the issue of using cheques to return a deposit in anticipation of serving a valid Section 21 notice. The judgment in Richworth Ltd v Billingham (2023) EW Misc 8 (CC), which is binding on itself and all lower Courts, is the latest appeal judgment on this point.
The facts of the case concerned whether a deposit was properly returned to a tenant and on this basis, whether a Section 21 notice was valid.
The key findings were as follows:
