Thursday, February 17, 2011
Illegal lettings websites are targeting UK consumers
and defrauding them of thousands of pounds according to the
Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA).
Foreign criminals
have been using copies of UK lettings' sites - a process known as
"scraping" - to persuade consumers to part with their deposits.
The websites are
highly professional in appearance and use industry logos to
convince overseas tenants of their legitimacy.
"Tenants must double
check the validity of the websites they are using by checking
websites such as ARLA and then contact the agent on the details
listed there if they have any doubts at all," warned Ian Potter,
Operations Manager at ARLA. "Unfortunately, criminals who are
operating from abroad can misappropriate company brands and
industry logos to convince consumers that they are dealing with a
legitimate lettings organisation."
"Due to the apparent
quality of some of these fraudulent sites, tenants should also
ensure that they use web portals such as www.propertylive.co.uk
where they can be sure that all the properties are advertised
through regulated agents."
ARLA members have
noted a particular upsurge of fraud from companies posting on the
website Gumtree and claiming to be letting properties in Sydney.
(*see notes to editors for case study examples) In the past, this
has also been seen in for properties in London and major UK cities
for Student Lettings amongst others.
The illegal sites
essentially hijack a UK agent's website appearance and offer access
to properties and rental opportunities. Consumers who have paid in
deposits into the accounts of the representatives of these sites
have been left out of pocket and without access to the property
they have been promised.
"We have had numerous
reports from our member agents at ARLA, who have noted an increase
in the trend of website scraping in the past six months. We urge
any concerned tenant to always use a licensed letting agent - they
can call to confirm the identity of that agent through ARLA.
Top Tips to avoid
being caught out:
• Get a friend,
contact or relative to check the property exists and is
available.
• Do not pay monies
if you or a reliable contact has not visited the property with an
agent or the landlord.
• Ask for copies of
tenancy agreements and any safety certificates such as Gas
Electricity or HMO Licence.
• Do not be
pressurised into transferring large sums of money. Transfer funds
to a Bank Account having obtained the details by contacting the
landlord or agent direct after the above steps have been
followed.
• Victims of any
fraud must also inform the Trading Standards Board as well as the
police, particularly in cases where money has been lost.
ENDS
Notes to
Editors:
ARLA members have
identified the following website as an example of the scrapping
trends, and have received several complaints about it.
http://www.intlett.co.uk/mau.mhtml-count-num=107544.htm
ARLA has several case
studies of tenants who have been defrauded by the operators of this
site and can put you in touch with them. Please call John Williams
on 020 3128 8157.