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Cornerstone on Social Housing Fraud is a new title explaining the civil and criminal law, including evidence gathering, pertaining to social housing fraud.
According to government estimates, at least 100,000 social housing properties are the subject of housing fraud. In response to this, the Government introduced the Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Act. The Act has made tenancy fraud a criminal matter – and local authorities have the power to prosecute those who unlawfully sublet their social housing.
Key changes in the Act included:-
With a huge shortfall in social housing, there is constant pressure on local authorities to identify and tackle social housing fraud within their housing stock. In Westminster, a raid on one Paddington housing block revealed 75% of housing benefit claimants were not living in their registered properties and were illegally subletting them for thousands of pounds a week. Another raid on the luxury 600-flat Park West development on Edgware Road found 61% of claimants were subletting their properties.
With no handbook on the market for local authorities to guide them through this process, Cornerstone on Social Housing Fraud is the first title to act as a practical guide to meet this need.