Tenant referencing scams leave landlords thousands out of pocket

Landlords have warned that police are not doing enough to tackle rental sector fraud, with criminals using fake IDs to secure tenancy agreements and causing thousands of pounds in damage.

BBC Panorama investigation There’s a Gangster in My Flat found that fake passports are being used to deceive landlords and letting agents.

All landlords in England must check tenants have the right to rent during a tenancy check.

Thousands of pounds worth of damage

Landlord and property developer Craig Shepheard rented a two-bedroom flat to a tenant who claimed to work as a courier. A letting agent carried out referencing checks, including inspecting the tenant’s passport, and approved the application.

However, after a few months, the tenant stopped paying rent and neighbours began making complaints. When the tenant reported a faulty washing machine, Mr Shepheard visited the property and noticed the windows had been blacked out.

After police told him they needed more evidence before seeking a search warrant, Mr Shepheard gathered video footage showing men entering the flat late at night. It was later discovered the property was being used by a prostitution ring linked to a criminal network in Brazil.

Although the letting agent had checked the tenant’s passport, a subsequent Home Office immigration check found it was fake. Mr Shepheard’s solicitor eventually traced the tenant and secured possession of the property.

Mr Shepheard said: “There was four and a half months of unpaid rent and a £4,500 repair bill just to get the property back onto the rental market.

“I had done everything right, making sure the tenant had been checked through a letting agent. Getting the police involved, waiting for a search warrant and then finally getting the tenant evicted was too much hassle for not enough gain.”

Landlords becoming more stringent with referencing

The programme said the private rented sector contributes an estimated £45 billion to the economies of England and Wales.

Paul Shamplina, founder of Landlord Action, supplied case studies for the investigation and appeared on the programme as an expert contributor. He said landlords provide a valuable service to the UK housing market, but warned that increased scrutiny around referencing could have unintended consequences.

He said: “Landlords are going to be much, much more stringent with referencing now, which means the more vulnerable, lower-income tenants on Universal Credit could realistically miss out on the private rented sector.

“Panorama shines an important light on what is happening and the devastating impact it can have on the property owners involved.”

The full programme can be watched on BBC iPlayer. 

For help and advice about tenant eviction and collecting arrears, then Landlord Action may be able to help: