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Student Rental Deposits, Trainers, BT Digital Voice

Complaints from students that letting agents are withholding rental deposits unfairly. Nike's new competitors. The regulator Ofcom on the switchover to BT Digital Voice.

One in five students has had a problem getting a deposit back after a house share at university. That figure comes from a survey of nearly 2,000 students in the UK for the online advice service, Save the Student. You and Yours has been hearing from students and their families, too, about some of the difficulties they've been having in getting their deposit money returned. Some say they've had huge amounts deducted from their deposits for things that were already damaged when they moved in. We hear from one man about his daughter's struggle to get her 拢520 deposit back. We also speak to Tom Allingham from Save the Student and Greg Tsuman from Propertymark which represents letting agents.

We take a look at the UK's 拢3 billion market for trainers which has long been dominated by Nike. The footwear giant's position is looking a bit shakier than usual due to weakening demand and increasing competition from other emerging brands like On Running, Hoka and Salomon. Our reporter speaks to trainer enthusiasts in Manchester city centre. We also hear from Georgia Gilbert, the news and trends editor at The Sole Supplier, a trainer news site.

We follow up on more complaints to the You and Yours inbox about the big switchover to a new internet phone system. It's called Digital Voice and it's being rolled out
by BT as the old copper landline network is due to be switched off at the end of 2025. We hear again from one of our listeners whose 87-year-old mother was left without a proper connection for six months after being moved to Digital Voice. We also speak to Lindsey Fussell, Ofcom's Networks and Communications Director.

Presenter: Winifred Robinson
Producer: Tara Holmes

Available now

53 minutes

Broadcast

  • Wed 6 Sep 2023 12:04

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