Housing cheat loses home

The tenant was guilty of illegally subletting his one-bedroom council home while he lived elsewhere in the city. Even though hundreds of people in genuine housing need are desperately waiting for a council home like his, this particular tenant chose to breach his tenancy agreement and make money unlawfully. However, he did not know he was under investigation and that his illegal subletting operation would soon come crashing down. 

We offered him the option to return the property to us and face no further action during the key amnesty in November last year, but he refused. This left us no other option but to take the case to Civil Court.

The court awarded us a possession order to reclaim the property and force the tenant to hand his keys back to us. He is now barred from applying for social housing in the future and will be liable for the costs to repair the damage that his illegal tenants caused, including broken windows and a garden full of rubbish.

One-bedroom council homes like this are highly desirable as they are often allocated to people downsizing from a large house who still want a garden (which helps to free up much needed family homes). So, reclaiming this property from a fraudster will directly benefit people in genuine housing need who are waiting for a council home.

Moving forward we have started to use the Criminal Court in addition to the Civil Court where housing cheats may receive a conviction, hefty fine or even a prison sentence.

As well as investigating and tracking tenants who sublet their council property, we are also cracking down on people who make fraudulent Right to Buy claims, try to jump the queue by lying on their housing application, or live in a council home without proper permission.

More and more tenants and leaseholders are helping us identify incidents of housing fraud. Have you noticed a property where the occupants seem to change regularly or spotted someone collecting rent from subtenants? If you know of someone who is committing housing fraud, please let us know. All reports will be treated in the strictest confidence and can be made anonymously. Please contact your Local Housing Office, email us or call our Tenancy Fraud team on 023 8091 7610 if you have suspicions about anyone in your neighbourhood.