Housing
Housing fraud with false claims, subletting, undisclosed moves, and money laundering
In 2023, the Tenancy Fraud Forum and Fraud Advisory Panel reported an estimated 148,000 of Social Housing homes are fraudulently occupied in England. The cost of tenancy fraud is estimated to be £900 million. This fraud wastes public services, increases costs to the taxpayer as Councils spend more on paying for emergency accommodation due to a lack of housing, and means longer long waiting lists for those waiting for social housing.
Examples of Social Housing fraud:
- Giving false information on a housing or Right to buy application / lying about circumstances
- Using money from illegal activity to purchase a Right to buy (money laundering)
- Sub-letting a Council property to someone else for a financial gain
- Continuing to live in a Council property after the tenant has died and not notifying the Council
- Not living in the Council property but living somewhere else
- Selling keys / unlawfully passing tenancy to another person
- Not declaring full capital
- Pretending that have lived at a social housing property for more than a year but haven’t (succession fraud)
