National Fraud Initiative

Do you...

• Think someone has a home we don't know about?
• Think someone has given us false information in their housing application?
• Think you've seen someone collecting rent from your neighbours?
• Notice that the tenants of a property keep changing?

Tenancy fraud is unfair and stops homes from going to those on our waiting list in urgent need of housing.

If you suspect anything unusual, please:

Call us on 0800 028 1036

or

Email us at fraudline@canterbury.gov.uk

What counts as fraud?

• Obtaining a tenancy by deception - for example, by lying about your identity or your circumstances.
• Failing to notify us when the legal tenant moves out or passes away.
• Key selling - where the tenant moves out and sells the keys for a one-off payment or favour.
• Subletting (renting out) the whole property to a single household.
• Multiple subletting of the property.
• Not occupying the property as your principal home (if you are down as the legal tenant).
• Wrongly claimed succession - staying in the property following the death or vacation of the legal tenant (if they succeeded to their tenancy), or of a non-qualifying person.

Background information

We have volunteered to take part in a national programme aimed at cracking down on the unlawful subletting of council homes. The programme aims to identify and deal with those who are occupying council-owned homes without our agreement.

Unlawful subletting can be a lucrative business for some individuals and it is vitally important that when low cost housing is in such short supply as it is, that we make sure that the tenants we have in our homes are and should be living there.

In Canterbury we have a good track record of dealing with tenancy misuse, but to help with this initiative we will be setting up a dedicated anonymous telephone answering service for any tenants who are suspicious that a council home near them is being occupied unlawfully.

As part of this process we will not be including tenants who have taken in a lodger or sub-let their property with our permission - although there is obviously a need for those tenants receiving benefit to declare this to the benefits agency or to Housing Benefits.

Whatever your suspicion, please contact us today.