Hammersmith & Fulham Council’s Anti-Fraud Team has caught out 26 housing scammers.
Officers halted more than £475,000 worth of fraud being carried out by the sub-letting fraudsters.
In one case, the team received a tip off about someone illegally sub-letting their three-bedroom property in Strode Road, Fulham.
They found out the tenant was living in East London and their bank statements had rent payments from family members who were living in the SW6 property. The tenant gave up the property before going to court because of the significant evidence against them.
HOUSING FRAUDSTERS
In the last year, over 25 properties have been recovered thanks to the Anti-Fraud Team. Now, these are all home to families in genuine need.
Cllr Rowan Ree, Cabinet Member for Finance and Reform, said: “We will not tolerate people exploiting council homes in this way.
“Our council homes are there to support residents in genuine need. We will not stop in our fight against housing fraudsters as we make H&F a stronger, safer, kinder place.”
Cllr Frances Umeh, Cabinet Member for Housing and Homelessness added: “We’re determined to put fairness at the heart of housing in H&F. We’ll continue rooting out fraud wherever it hides, so that families waiting patiently and rightfully have a safe place to call home.”
CAUGHT OUT
Lickey House, W14
Gas safety inspectors raised an alert when they found three men living in the property.
The team discovered utility bills and bank statements proving the tenant hadn’t lived in W14 since they moved to Ethiopia in 2019.
The case was taken to court and the council got the property back and gave it to someone in need.
Roseford Court, W12
The team received a tip off that a tenant was sub-letting their flat while living in a home they own in Waltham Abbey.
The tenant denied sub-letting, claiming his wife was living in the flat while he was living in Waltham Abbey after they separated.
But they found no evidence either of them was still living in the Shepherds Bush flat.
They gave up the two-bedroom flat due to the amount of evidence against them.
Shepherds Court, W12
The team had suspicions that a woman was no longer living in her three-bedroom flat in Shepherds Bush.
Their investigation revealed she lived in Surbiton while her daughter lived in the flat.
The council helped the daughter get a one-bedroom property and reallocated the three-bedroom flat to a larger family.
ANTI-FRAUD EFFORTS
The Anti-Fraud Team investigates suspicious incidents to help reduce the risk of fraud, bribery and corruption.
FRED (Fraud, Error and Recovery Hub) is a new programme we recently launched to help tackle fraud.
It uses data-matching and automation to investigate cases more efficiently.
FRED has already helped flag 70 possible cases of tenancy fraud. Its software can identify tenants who may have passed away, moved into care or are living elsewhere.
H&F is also part of the National Fraud Initiative. This hub can help tackle fraud with its clever algorithm that can spot unusual data and flag potential fraud in real-time.
