Subletting In Some London Boroughs 'As High As 10% of Tenancies'

Subletting in some London boroughs is as high as 10 per cent of tenancies according to credit experts Experian who has launched a new UK-wide data sharing initiative to target fraudsters. Experian Public Sector - which has worked with more than 30 social housing providers - has detected potential fraud in six per cent of tenancies. Extrapolated out across the UK, this is equal to one in 16 social homes at a cost to tax payers of over £2 billion. However, it says in "premium locations" such as London some local authorities are suffering rates as high as nine or ten per cent. Experian claims its new service will cross-match the tenancy, waiting and temporary accommodation lists of housing providers to look for evidence of the same tenant or co-occupant being resident in another provider’s housing. Under the new initiative, Experian will issue alerts that will help providers expedite their investigations and prioritise high risk fraud cases. Read more on the Experian website.