Fraud in the rental industry is increasing, with false tenancy applications and other types of fraud becoming more common.

According to the 2020 Fraud and Corruption Tracker by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA), false tenancy applications are the fastest-growing area of housing fraud, costing an estimated £60.1m in the UK.

Sim Sekhon, the managing director of LegalforLandlords, has warned that awareness and defence strategies against fraud must keep pace with the growing sophistication of fraudulent activity.

“Only this week, we had an application where our detailed employment checks contradicted the applicant’s version – and in that case, the landlord could have faced significant losses. We’ve also seen previous landlord references that don’t quite ring true,” he said.

While technology can provide a solution to the problem of human error, Sekhon warned that fraudsters are constantly evolving their tactics and that technology alone cannot provide all the answers to fraud in tenancy applications.

“It’s certainly one of the best defences we have, but we must keep our guard up. The fraudsters aren’t going away,” he said.

Sekhon stressed the need for vigilance and the use of the best available tools to combat fraud.