The Tenancy Fraud Forum (TFF), in partnership with the Fraud Advisory Panel, have published new research, Lost homes, lost hope: social housing fraud in England – recovering social homes for those in need. It examines the problem of social housing fraud, often called tenancy fraud, which is the unlawful occupation of social housing property.
Findings suggest that the amount of tenancy fraud detected fell by 50% between 2013/14 and 2019/20, following the abolition of the Audit Commission in 2015. [It is estimated that] at least 148,000 social housing homes are subject to some form of tenancy fraud across England.
The report attempts to address the lack of official data, with a snapshot of social housing fraud as it is today in England as a whole and in each of the nine regions based on calculations drawn from previous analysis of tenancy fraud detections. It also aims to address the financial cost to the public purse of social housing fraud at a time when 95,000 families are currently in temporary accommodation and more than 1.2 million families are on the housing waiting list in England.
In London, one in 20 social homes are [thought to be] affected by it. Outside the capital, one in 30 social homes are [thought to be] subject to tenancy fraud.
Read the report at Tenancy Fraud Detection Report | Tenancy Fraud Forum
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