Birmingham councilor gives warning to housing cheats

Housing fraudsters will be tracked down and called to account, says Cllr John Lines, Birmingham’s Cabinet Member for Housing. The warning comes on the back of the Council’s new anti-fraud campaign – Blow the Whistle on Housing Cheats which launched today.

The campaign has been created to clamp-down on housing fraud by encouraging people to speak out about fraudulent activity. It is backed by 11 of the city’s housing associations, includes posters around the city and a dedicated telephone line to deal with reports.

Tenancy fraud includes:
• obtaining a council home by giving false information
• council tenants subletting their home without the council’s knowledge or permission
• council tenants swapping homes without the council’s consent
• people staying in a council property after the legal tenant has left the property or died, without informing the council
• Tenants who have abandoned their home or who are using it to grow drugs or for other illegal purposes may also be committing fraud.

It’s estimated that approx 1,000 housing association and council homes in Birmingham are occupied by someone who shouldn’t live there or who has obtained the tenancy fraudulently.

Cllr John Lines, Birmingham City Council’s cabinet member for housing, said: “With approximately 26,000 people currently waiting for a council home in Birmingham, we have to make sure that every one of our homes is let to people who need them, not to tenants making money at the council’s expense, or by providing false information in order to gain a property.

“Those who take part in illegal activity are not only breaking their tenancy agreement and cheating the taxpayer, they are also cheating others out of valuable housing space, denying families the chance of a much-needed home.

“As a council we will not tolerate our properties being misused and will take appropriate action which could lead to eviction.”

The council has recovered £10.2million in unclaimed benefits during the last year, and the anti-fraud campaign is another step in the recovery programme, with homes being recovered from those who are breaking their tenancy agreement and denying others the opportunity of a place to live.

If a tenancy agreement is breached by fraudulent activity the council can seek possession of the house and initiate prosecution under the Fraud Act. Birmingham Audit, part of the council’s fraud team, will handle reports from people with information about suspected fraudulent activity. All reports will be treated in the strictest confidence and can be given anonymously.