Aug

WARNING: 20% of tenant applications include false or fraudulent info – claim

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A leading letting platform has claimed that up to 20% of tenant applicants in the UK housing market use false data to gain tenancies.

Goodlord, which is largely used by letting agents to process applicants on behalf of landlords, says this involves most often false or doctored identification documents, right to rent check information, income proof, or landlord or employer references.

Although not widespread, such criminal or dishonest activity could have cost landlords a combined £1 million if it wasn’t for the increasing use of anti-fraud tech during the referencing process.

Goodlord is one of the leading providers of this, but is not the only one – several other platforms are able to use digital technology including Open Banking and Artificial Intelligence to verify tenants real digital footprints against their application details.

Risk of fraud

“Agents and landlords have long been alert to the risk of fraud and, unfortunately, a small number of criminals and dishonest tenants now have access to tools that mean fraud is getting harder and harder to detect,” says Blake Richmond (pictured), Managing Director of Referencing at Goodlord.

There are three key areas that landlords and agents should focus on when checking tenants applying for tenancies, including ID checks, credit checks, income verification and former tenancy references, all of which – when tech is employed – spot dodgy renters.

As LandlordZONE has reported on many occasions recently, landlords face huge costs and protracted eviction battles when fraudulent tenants gain access to properties and then refuse to budge when their deceit is uncovered, including one shocking case in July last year involving landlord Prafula Copp, who is campaigning to prompt the government to legislate on the issue.

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