MORE than £500,000 is being withheld by tenants of private landlords in the North-East, according to a report.

It is estimated that 4,340 tenants have difficulty getting deposits returned and £686,200 is wrongfully retained each year.

The report, published today by Shelter and the Citizens Advice Bureau, said it is a particular problem for students, and calls for a national tenancy deposit scheme.

Almost 150 MPs have signed an Early Day Motion demanding the Government includes the scheme in the forthcoming Housing Bill.

The move was welcomed by Ken Natt, who runs a voluntary register of landlords in Hartlepool, one of the first areas in the country to have such a scheme, and where almost 300 of the town's 1,000 private landlords have registered.

Mr Natt said: "Withholding bonds is a national problem, but we would not expect those landlords on our register to make unreasonable deductions from deposits. If they are making deductions, landlords should explain in writing why they are doing so."

Ben Jackson, director of external affairs at Shelter, said: "Most of us can ill-afford to lose the hundreds of pounds we pay as a deposit to rent a home. Yet frequently, tenants simply accept this loss as one of the hazards of renting.

"There is no excuse to let this rip-off continue."

Citizens Advice Bureau chief executive David Harker said: "Too many landlords treat rent deposits as their own money, instead of money handed over to them in trust.

"Many do not even bother to give tenants a proper reason for failing to pay it back.

"Reputable landlords suffer because tenants sometimes respond by withholding their final month's rent next time around."

Letting agency boss Julie Richardson, who campaigned for the register in Hartlepool, said: "The only bonds that are ever withheld are either from people who have caused damage or who have rent arrears."