London borough prosecutes housing tenant for tenancy fraud, secures £33k+ order

A three-year investigation by Haringey Council has seen a housing tenant prosecuted for tenancy fraud and ordered to pay £33,894.58 (including costs), arising from a separate civil proceeding in September 2022. 

The costs included an unlawful profit order as the tenant, Miriam Bailor, had financially benefited from sub-letting the property to an unsuspecting family for a monthly rent of £900 per month. 
 
Miss Bailor became a tenant at 174 Northumberland Park in October 1998 and initially lived at that address until she vacated in December 2017 in order to sub-let the property.
 
Though Miss Bailor had pleaded not guilty at Highbury Corner Magistrates Court, an extensive investigation by Haringey Council’s Audit and Anti-Fraud team showed that she was not occupying her tenancy address and that other persons were living there in her absence.  

Following a two-day trial at Highbury and Islington Magistrates Court Miss Bailor was found guilty of unlawfully subletting her property, contrary to section 1 (1) Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Act 2013 and sanctioned recovery of any profit made by illegally subletting the property.
 
Concerns were initially raised with the Audit and Anti-Fraud team when a contractor suspected that Miss Bailor was not living at the address in Northumberland Park and that another family was living there in her absence.
 
Miss Bailor was interviewed under caution by officers from Haringey Council Investigations team where all available evidence was presented to her. Throughout the interview she maintained that she was living at the tenancy address and claimed that any money she received from the sub-tenants was in respect of childcare that she was providing for them.
 
The district judge is reported to have said: “….What you did was clearly intentional and done for profit. As for harm, behaviour such as yours undermines the system used by local authorities to grant secure tenancies, and I full well understand why parliament introduced an Act such as this because it’s there to deter people from misusing housing when they have been lucky enough to receive a council tenancy…”

Cllr Sarah Williams, Haringey's Cabinet Member for Finance and Local Investment, said: “I hope this case serves as a reminder to those who are thinking they are above the law. We will not hesitate to act against anyone caught making fraudulent claims. Haringey Council has a zero tolerance to fraud and corruption.”