Tenancy fraud can prevent affordable properties being offered to people in real housing need. It is a serious breach of tenancy. It’s also a criminal offence.
What is tenancy fraud?
It’s when someone:
- provides false information to get a home or
- doesn’t use the property as their main home or
- sublets it to someone else
Some examples
- Fraudulent application: that’s when someone provides false or misleading information to get a home. This might be things like pretending circumstances are different to how they really are, or providing false ID.
- Key selling: selling keys to a property for financial reward.
- Non-occupation: when someone claims a home is their main residence when in fact it is a second home or is rarely used.
- Unlawful subletting: Unauthorised occupants residing in some or all of the property without Soha’s consent
- Fraudulent successions: these are tenancies that are kept following the tenant’s death without Soha’s consent.
- Unauthorised exchange, assignment or mutual exchange: this is when someone exchanges their home with another without Soha’s authorisation.
- Abandonment: leaving a home empty permanently, or for long periods of time.
Potential consequences
Tenancy fraud could result in a breach of the tenancy agreement, that is when a resident breaks the contract for the Soha home that they have with us. Doing this could involve losing the home and having to pay court costs. It can also mean they are breaking the law. That can result in up to two years in prison and a £50,000 fine.
Spotting potential tenancy fraud
- Unfamiliar faces: do you see strangers regularly coming and going from the property, or people living there who you don’t recognise? Have you seen that children live there when, as far as you knew, the tenant lives alone?
- Short-term rentals: have you seen any signs that the property may being used as a short-term let? Things like lots of unfamiliar cars or frequent new occupants should raise concerns.
- Abandonment: does the garden or home itself look unkempt? Have you noticed a build-up of post, that the curtains are always closed or that you haven’t seen the tenant for a long period of time?
- Being advertised: have you seen adverts featuring the home on local social media groups, Airbnb and other places like that?
- Subletting: have you got new neighbours saying they rent the property via a private landlord?
If you suspect tenancy fraud
You can report it anonymously, and we’ll take it from there.
Report now or phone us at no cost to you on Freephone 0800 014 15 45.
We take tenancy fraud very seriously and will investigate all reports, working with partners such as the local authority, police and the Department for Work and Pensions.