1. Purpose of This Page

This enquiry form is operated by Key Legal Limited (trading as Key Law), a private limited company registered in England and Wales (Company No. 12443230).

We are authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA ID: 669769).

Our registered office is: Key Law, Spaces, The Lewis Building, 35 Bull Street, Birmingham, B4 6AF.

The purpose of this page is to allow you to raise an enquiry about a tenancy deposit claim by completing our eligibility checker. This tool helps us assess whether your dispute may be suitable for further review – in particular, where your deposit was not protected in a government-authorised tenancy deposit scheme, or where the required information about the scheme was not provided to you, within the time limits set by the Housing Act 2004.

If your concern is only about the return of your deposit, or deductions your landlord or letting agent has made from it, please tell us when you enquire, as different rules and remedies may apply.

Submitting this form does not create a solicitor-client relationship or constitute legal advice.

These Terms apply only to your initial enquiry and do not form part of any retainer or funding agreement.

2. No Legal Advice

Information on this page is for general information only and is not legal advice. Submitting this eligibility checker does not create a solicitor-client relationship.

3. No Solicitor-Client Relationship

Submitting your details does not mean we represent you. We only act for you once:

we confirm in writing that we can take your case;
a conflict check is completed; and
you sign our engagement or retainer agreement and agree to our terms of business.

Completing the eligibility checker does not guarantee representation. If your enquiry passes initial screening, it will be subject to further human review before we confirm whether we can act for you. We do not consider a solicitor-client relationship to exist until all onboarding steps are complete.

4. How We Will Contact You About Your Enquiry

By submitting this form, you agree that we may contact you about your enquiry by phone, email and SMS, so that we can respond to it and, where relevant, progress it. You can ask us to change how we contact you, or tell us to stop, at any time by contacting us.

Marketing. We will only send you marketing about our other services if you have given us separate, specific consent to receive it. You can withdraw that consent at any time, including by using the unsubscribe option in any message or by contacting us. Withdrawing marketing consent will not affect how we deal with your enquiry.

5. Accuracy of Information

You confirm that the information you provide is accurate and complete to the best of your knowledge. Providing false or incomplete information may prevent us from reviewing your matter.

6. Electronic Document Signing

If you participate in a live onboarding session and sign your retainer documents through our secure electronic document signing service, you agree that:

electronic signatures executed during the session are legally valid and binding (in accordance with the Electronic Communications Act 2000 and applicable UK electronic signature law);
a trusted third-party provider may process your personal information solely for the purpose of executing these documents; and
your consent to use this electronic signing method is given by completing the live session.

Further details on how we handle your data are available in our Privacy Policy.

7. Anti-Money Laundering and Identity Verification

As an SRA-regulated law firm, we are legally required to complete identity and anti-money laundering (AML) checks on our clients. These checks are mandatory under the Money Laundering Regulations 2017. You acknowledge that:

identity and AML checks are required as part of our onboarding process;
these checks may be completed either during a live onboarding session or via a secure link emailed to you;
we carry out the checks that are necessary and proportionate to your matter, applying a risk-based approach. Depending on our assessment of your matter, this may include verifying your identity, screening against politically exposed persons (PEPs) and sanctions lists, and identity (“likeness”) verification;
we use a trusted third-party provider to conduct verification, and we share only the minimum information necessary for identity and fraud-prevention purposes; and
if you do not complete the AML process when requested, we may suspend or cease work on your matter.

We may begin preliminary work on your matter before AML checks are completed where it is appropriate to do so, but we cannot continue acting if the checks are not completed or if the results prevent us from acting.

Further details about how we handle your data are set out in our Privacy Policy.

8. Confidentiality

Please do not submit highly sensitive or confidential information through this form. Information submitted online may not be fully secure before a solicitor-client relationship is established.

Please wait until formal engagement before sharing documents – such as your tenancy agreement, deposit protection certificates, or correspondence with your landlord or letting agent – or other sensitive case details.

9. Costs and Funding

Before you decide whether to instruct us, we will explain how your claim would be funded and any costs or charges that may apply, so that you can make an informed decision.

Tenancy deposit claims of this kind are usually funded under a Conditional Fee Agreement (a “no win, no fee” arrangement). IIf we offer to act for you, we will provide you with a full funding agreement before you sign anything. This will set out our Basic Charges, the Success Fee, and any amount that may be deducted from your compensation.

For tenancy deposit claims, our Success Fee is 30% of the compensation you receive (exclusive of VAT). This Success Fee is only payable if your claim succeeds. If your claim does not succeed, you will not pay our Basic Charges or the Success Fee

Tenancy deposit claims are normally allocated to the small claims track, where each party bears their own legal costs. For this reason, ATE insurance is not required and is not provided as part of this Agreement.

10. No Guarantee of Outcome

Past results do not guarantee future results. We do not guarantee that we can take on your matter or achieve any specific outcome. Eligibility and outcomes may depend on our criteria, the funding arrangements, and third-party assessments.

11. How We Use Your Data

Your data will be used to respond to and, where relevant, progress your enquiry, and for the identity and AML purposes described above. We process your personal data in line with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, as explained in our Privacy Policy, which sets out our lawful bases, how long we keep your data, and your rights.

12. Automated Decisions and Your Right to Review

We may use automated tools to help screen enquiries. Under the UK GDPR (Articles 22A–22D, as amended by the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025), you have rights in relation to decisions made solely by automated means that have a legal or similarly significant effect on you. If your enquiry is rejected through automated screening, you may ask for a person to review the decision, make representations about it, and contest it. Automated screening is used only to prioritise and route enquiries. It does not make legal decisions about your rights or entitlements.

To request a review, please email our Data Protection Lead, Alessio Ianiello, at alessio@keylaw.co.uk, quoting your enquiry reference and a brief explanation of your request.

13. Complaints

We aim to provide a good service. If you are unhappy with any aspect of our service, please contact us first so that we can try to put things right. Please contact our Legal Director, Alessio Ianiello, at complaints@keylaw.co.uk. A copy of our complaints procedure is available on request.

If we are unable to resolve your complaint, you may be able to refer it to the Legal Ombudsman. You should normally contact the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving our final written response, and within one year of the act or omission you are complaining about (or within one year of when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint).

Legal Ombudsman: www.legalombudsman.org.uk; 0300 555 0333; enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk; PO Box 6167, Slough, SL1 0EH.

If you have concerns about our professional behaviour or conduct – for example, dishonesty or a breach of the SRA Principles – you can report this to the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Further information is available at www.sra.org.uk.

14. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales. Any disputes shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts. Nothing in these Terms affects any rights you have as a consumer that cannot be excluded by law.

15. Contact

If you have any questions about these Terms, your enquiry, or your data rights, please contact Alessio Ianiello at alessio@keylaw.co.uk.