Amnesty launched to bring forward tenancy frauds

Tenants committing tenancy fraud will be able to hand in the keys to their properties without risk of prosecution in a month-long amnesty.

Knowsley Housing Trust (KHT) is running the amnesty throughout February with Knowsley Council to crack down on tenancy fraud and encourage those responsible to come forward.

“Tenancy fraud takes away homes from those on waiting lists who desperately need them,” said Terry Bonner, KHT’s Operational Director of Landlord Services.

“We want to appeal to those who are committing fraud to do the right thing now, rather than risk being caught and feeling the full consequences later on.”

During the amnesty anyone who hands back the keys to properties they are not occupying or have been unlawfully subletting will face no consequences.

After that period KHT will again be taking full legal action against anyone found not to be living at the address they are paying rent at.

Throughout February KHT will be writing to tenants asking if they know of anyone who they think is committing tenancy fraud, and carrying out community ‘walkabouts’ to hand out information and talk to neighbours.

The amnesty will be advertised with posters in communal blocks and SMS text messages sent out via the council’s messaging service.

“Those who commit tenancy fraud are profiting from a resource that is in huge demand for some of the most vulnerable people in society. It is illegal and could lead to a fine or a prison sentence,” said Terry.

“We need the community to be aware of whether their neighbours are actually occupying their home and to tell us about it if they suspect fraud is being committed.”

Knowsley Council’s Cabinet Member for Finance and IT, Cllr Norman Keats, said: “This is the first targeted tenancy fraud project we have been involved with.

“It’s difficult to know how widespread the problem is until we get out there and tackle it, but we anticipate there will be many empty properties where the registered tenant is living elsewhere.

“This can happen for a number of reasons – a tenant may have moved out of the area for work or to be with a partner but has kept the property as a backup. They may not know that they are committing fraud, but they must hand the property back so it can be used by people desperately in need of a home.”