Tenancy Fraud Action Week launches this week

From 17 - 23 November 2025, we’re taking part in Tenancy Fraud Action Week – a national campaign dedicated to raising awareness about tenancy fraud within social housing.

Our aim is to ensure that our homes go to those who genuinely need them.

What is tenancy fraud?

Tenancy fraud is when someone provides false information to gain a property, sublets the property to someone else, or does not use it as their only or main home.

There are many different types of tenancy fraud. However, here are a few of the more common types:

• False Right To Buy/Right To Acquire – where a customer makes a Right to Buy or Right to Acquire application and gives false information in their application.
• Key selling – where a customer is paid to pass on their keys in return for a one-off payment.
• Obtaining housing by deception – where a person gets home by giving false information on their housing application.
• Unlawful assignment – where a customer stops using their tenancy as their principal home, allowing another person to live there without permission from us.
• Unlawful subletting – where a customer rents out their home without the knowledge or permission of the landlord.
• Wrongly claimed succession – where the resident dies, and someone tries to take over or succeed the tenancy they are not entitled to.

Action we'll take

It is a criminal offence to commit tenancy fraud. If we have evidence a tenant has committed tenancy fraud we will seek to prosecute at court. The Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Act 2013 carries a sentence of up to two years and/or a fine up to £50,000.

We can make a claim for:

• any profit made from tenancy fraud to be repaid to the council
• possession of the home through the courts
• any rent arrears and legal costs