Government Closes Net On Tenancy Cheats

Kris Hopkins has warned tenancy fraudsters that the net is closing in on those who con taxpayers out of money and deny hard-working families the opportunity to live in a council home. New measures will enable councils to access information about people suspected of tenancy fraud from banks, building societies, utility and telecommunication companies, which could be essential in identifying and prosecuting cheats and freeing up homes for the families that deserve them. Across England it is estimated that 98,000 social homes are being unlawfully occupied, with those tenancy cheats sub-letting living off the profits elsewhere. In some inner London boroughs cases of social housing fraud are as high 1 in 20 properties. This could be costing taxpayers as much as £1.8 billion a year. Read more on the GovUK website.