Unlawful subletting, tenancy fraud and squatting

To live in one of our 55,000 homes, you must meet the eligibility criteria and stick to your tenancy agreement. Most customers are happy to follow these rules, but a small number don't and this is called tenancy fraud.

Tenancy fraud is when a home is not used by the person (or people) eligible to live in it.

People who commit tenancy fraud deprive those in genuine need.

And as a social landlord we have a duty to make the best use of public resources and prevent tenancy fraud in our homes.

Here are some examples of tenancy fraud:

• Unlawful subletting – Someone is living in all, or part of a home, without our knowledge or permission
• Non occupation by the customer as their principal home – The customer does not live in the property as their main home
• Wrongly claimed succession – When a customer dies and someone knowingly takes over the tenancy when they are not entitled to. However, it is sometimes possible to take over someone's tenancy; this is called succession. If the person named on the tenancy agreement has passed away please get in touch so we can help you with succession.
• Key selling – The customer leaves the home and passes on the keys to someone else in return for money or favours
• Fraudulently obtaining a social housing tenancy – When false information was knowingly provided on a housing application
• Unauthorised assignments – The home was given to/assigned to another person without our permission
• Abandonment – Where a customer stops living at their home and doesn’t tell us, or moves out and keeps claiming benefits for the property
• Keeping a social rented home when they own or rent another property

If you want to know more about subletting in England and Scotland, and find out if you are able to sublet your tenancy, then read rules around your tenancy.

Tenancy fraud is a criminal offence and breaches the terms of your tenancy agreement. Knowingly committing tenancy fraud may mean you lose your home.

It’s a costly problem. The Tenancy Fraud Forum reported that 100,000 homes are subject to tenancy fraud at an average cost to the taxpayer of £42,000 per detected home.

• There are any changes to the number of people living in your home who are not mentioned on the tenancy agreement
• There are changes to your eligibility for any benefits you receive
• You intend to be away from your home for a longer period of time, with details of when you intend to return
• You are no longer living there as your main home

Our homes should go to people who need them, which is why we:

• Carry out regular tenancy checks to make sure the right people are living in our homes
• Work in partnership with other organisations to tackle unlawful subletting
• Follow up all reports of tenancy fraud
• Use appropriate legal powers to help tackle unlawful subletting
• Train our teams to treat unlawful subletting effectively
• Look for ways to prevent unlawful subletting from occurring in the first place

Squatting is when someone enters a home and lives there without permission. Squatting is illegal and can lead to six months in prison, a £5000 fine or both.

If you think squatters are living in one of our homes then please report it to us:

Tel: 0345 141 4663
Email: contactus@homegroup.org.uk