Renter Beware
Most assignees to the UK will rent their accommodation. It is understandable. They are here for a limited period of time and the vast majority will return to their home country. Some assignees will be supported by a professional employee relocation company engaged by their employer to guide them through the intricacies and nuances of living and working in the UK.
However, many assignees, or new recruits, will often get a ‘lump sum’ towards their relocation costs and then secure their own accommodation. Like many in the UK, they will turn to Google and the property platforms such as Gumtree, SpareRoom, Craigslist or even Rightmove to find a property to rent. With a rapidly shrinking Private Rented Sector, they will face intense competition to rent somewhere to live, and in some high demand areas as many as 40 prospective tenants are attempting to secure a property.
It is this febrile and competitive environment that the scammer will strike at the unsuspecting victim.
The Fake Landlord
The scammer will list a fake property on the platforms, cloning photos and information lifted from other cities or platforms. Prospective tenants are convinced to pay a substantial ‘holding deposit’ to secure the property, often before they have even seen it. The victim is told that there is ‘intense interest from other tenants’, or the payment is to ‘manage the demand’ or to ‘prevent time wasters’. The scammer will persuade the person that the ‘money is fully refundable’.
The con-artist’s ‘convincer’ may be virtual tour of the property, but we have read of tenants actually being shown around a property by someone claiming to be the landlord or letting agent and then being asked for the large deposit.
The Stats
Action Fraud UK https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/ report some alarming statistics for the UK on ‘Rental Fraud’:
In the last 13 months to end of September 2024 there have been 4,675 cases of this type of fraud reported to them, with a loss of £9.8 million. You can safely assume that many victims of fraud do not report it to their local Police Force, so the actual numbers will be considerably higher.
It appears that 44% of victims are women, 38% are men but 18% weren’t classified so it will probably be that both genders are equally at risk. However, age does play a part in who may be a victim. The majority of victims are between 20-29 years old (45.5%). 25% of the 30-39 year olds were caught, 15% of 40-49 year olds, 10% of 50-59 year olds and the rest were between 60-89.
Often corporates will not support their graduates or less senior hires with professional relocation, and yet these stats indicate they may be most at risk. Typically university students will be caught by fraudsters as they all try and get student accommodation at the same time, and face fierce competition for property.
The Solutions
- Try and work through professional letting agents with a good local reputation. Check out a letting agent, as much as you would a landlord to make sure they are legitimate.
- Never send money in advance to ‘landlord’. It isn’t standard practice, although some legitimate agents may ask you to do so after an in-person viewing.
- Always visit in person. While there, check out the Gas Safe certificate and EICR. Ask questions about rubbish & recycling, building security, the neighbourhood, etc. A fraudster impersonating the landlord will probably not have specific answers.
- Check out the advert by doing a ‘reverse image search’ on Google. Right click on the image, select search for image on the web or search the image on Google. If you are doing this on your mobile(cell), click on the three dots and select ‘i’ for information on the image.
- Try and pay for deposits by credit card
- Go to the Land Registry and check if the Landlord actually owns the property https://www.landregistersearch.co.uk/property-ownership/ The Landlord’s name you have been given at the start of the process should be the one who owns the property.
- If the rental price you are being asked to pay is well below the market rate, the chances are that it is too good to be true.
- If the ‘landlord’ is applying pressure for you to pay something, it is time to walk away.