Landlords who use the 'insured' option to protect tenancy deposits will have to pay up to £95 for the privilege.

This became clear when Tenancy Deposit Solutions - the version of tenancy deposit protection backed by the National Landlords Association - at last announced its fees structure.

From 6 April all landlords who take deposits under assured shorthold tenancy agreements will be required by law to participate in one of only three authorised schemes - two 'insured' schemes and one 'custodial' scheme.

Within 14 days of taking deposits, landlords will be required to inform tenants of the protection scheme selected, where it can be contacted and how to apply for release of the deposit. If there is a dispute at the end of the tenancy about the amount to be returned, landlords using insured schemes will be required to hand over the disputed amount to the scheme until the dispute is resolved.

Tenancy Deposit Solutions is to charge private landlords a one off joining fee, payable in advance or at the point of protecting the first deposit, of £58.75 - although NLA members will pay £47. On top of this there will be a fee of £30 per deposit (£26 to NLA members) and an annual renewal fee of £14.70.

There will be no limit to the number of deposits that an individual scheme member can protect and, says the scheme, all fees (which include VAT) will be tax deductible.

Tenancy Deposit Solutions said any landlord ordinarily resident in the UK is eligible to join its scheme. In the event of a dispute at end of a tenancy the aggrieved tenant will be asked to submit a complaint form and supporting evidence to the scheme administrator. The scheme will try to resolve the dispute, 'if necessary, by offering an independent, impartial and evidence-based alternative dispute resolution service (as required by the Government as an alternative to the courts)'. Both parties to the dispute will have to agree to be bound by the dispute resolution findings.

'As we prepare ourselves for implementation of tenancy deposit protection on 6 April, the announcement of fees is an important milestone', said NLA chairman David Salusbury, who is also chairman of TDS. 'We believe landlords will find the tariff attractive. Our insurance based scheme will enable them to continue to hold deposits as at present, which gives a landlord a form of security against any damage that may occur during a tenancy. Many landlords feel that this stability contributes to the long term success of their business. Transferring funds into a custodial scheme could be a cumbersome alternative, particularly for a landlord with a substantial property portfolio'.

The second insured scheme is the Tenancy Deposit Scheme primarily designed for letting agents, although the scheme will also accept private landlords.

Agents will pay an annual subscription of between £521 and £1,609 – depending on their level of accreditation and regulation, with unregulated and accredited agents paying the most.

Private landlords who are members of trade associations will be able to use the scheme for a charge of £44 plus VAT per annum for each property. The annual subscription for each property for unaffiliated landlords will be £95 plus VAT.

'Our price structure has to be all about risk management, particularly the cost of dispute resolution. In many instances, we have absolutely no track record to work from, so these prices will have to remain in place until that can be established', explained TDS chief executive Lawrence Greenberg.

The custodial option is being run by the Deposit Protection Service. In this version deposits are handed over to the scheme for safe keeping. Although there is no charge, there is a loss of interest - which at current rates will be of the order of £35 a year on an average £700 deposit.

The idea is that the costs of the scheme are covered by the interest it earns on money it holds - about £17.50 per six month deposit - which, given the level of charges from the insured schemes - must raise some questions about whether this approach can be sustained long terms.

The scheme websites are at: http://www.mydeposits.co.uk, www.depositprotection.com, and www.tds.gb.com.

• A Government publicity campaign has begun today explaining how Tenancy Deposit Protection will benefit private tenants and landlords in ethnic minorities. The campaign - which includes two leaflets, one directed at tenants and one at landlords and agents, as well as radio and press advertising - will be translated into Bengali, Urdu, Polish, Chinese, Turkish, Welsh, Punjabi, and Gujarati. Curiously the campaign seems to be directed more at tenants than landlords.

Tenants from ethnic minority communities are more likely to be in private rented accommodation, and in the case of recently arrived immigrants are less likely to be aware of their rights or have problems with the language barrier, said the Government. In 2003/4, 34 per cent of tenants from ethnic minority communities didn't have their deposits returned either in full or at all, it claimed.

'Many people have lost their deposits due to various reasons. We often hear stories of landlords and agents taking advantage of tenants and refusing to refund deposits. Sometimes tenants are not aware of their rights so we are highlighting the schemes to help prevent this from happening', said Housing Minister Baroness Andrews.

'At the same time the scheme also provides landlords with a secure way of ensuring deposits are safeguarded by encouraging clear inventories and agreements prior to the payment of the deposit and a free arbitration service to deal with any disputes'.

Further information is available from the Government website http://www.direct.gov.uk/tenancydeposit.

• Shelter has produced 'a special red envelope' to help tenants protect their deposit money. The envelope sets out landlords' obligations under the new law and includes a receipt to prove the deposit was paid.

'Shelter helps thousands of people each year with deposit problems and has campaigned for many years to get tenancy deposit protection introduced', said its chief executive Adam Sampson. 'This money represents a sizeable chunk of cash for many tenants and losing it unfairly not only leaves thousands of people out of pocket, but can lead to homelessness. The tenancy deposit protection schemes provide a vital safety net for both tenants and responsible landlords, making the private rental sector more professional and fairer for everyone'.