Frauds

Individuals aged between 18 and 39 account for almost 75% of reported rental fraud cases, resulting in losses nearing £9m across approximately 5,000 incidents last year, the latest data from the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) reveals.

In light of these statistics, Propertymark is urging letting agents to be vigilant and proactive in combating rental fraud to protect consumers and themselves.

“By implementing rigorous verification processes, educating clients, and staying informed about the latest scam tactics, agents can significantly reduce the risk of fraud and maintain the integrity of the rental market,” the membership organisation said.

“Rental fraud happens when prospective tenants are tricked into paying an upfront fee to rent a property. However, the property does not exist, has already been rented out, or has been rented to multiple victims,” it added. “Victims will lose the upfront fee they have paid and cannot rent the property they thought they had secured.”

According to Propertymark, fraudsters will often contact their victims online. The adverts will seem genuine and are n accompanied by photos and contact information. In some cases, the victim will view the property in person, but in most cases, the payment is made without a prior viewing.

Action Fraud states that reports peak in September each year as fraudsters target students organising their accommodation for the academic year. Summer holiday lets are also a key target, accounting for 27% of reports in July and August.

Several businesses with income and assets worth billions of pounds are registered at a terraced house on Chorley Old Road in Bolton.

https://www.thebusinessdesk.com/northwest/news/2146508-fraud-or-fantasy-the-45billion-empire%C2%A0run-from-a-terraced-house-in-bolton

SPOTTING ROMANCE FRAUD

People who have fallen victim to romance scams tend to report the same pattern. If you or someone you know is using online dating or friendship sites and sees any of these signs, it may indicate you or they are being scammed:-

• Generally, the scam starts with an initial contact by the scammer. The scammer may be a member of the same online dating site as you or any online forum you have joined. The scammer may also contact you on social media such as Facebook.
• Their profile picture is very attractive. It’s common for scammers to use stolen photographs of beautiful people. You can check whether someone’s profile picture is associated with anyone else by accessing the website in Google Chrome, right-clicking on the picture and then clicking ‘Search Google for image’. Google will then display any other websites that the image is on. If the person seems to have a different name on other websites, chances are they are tricking you.
• The scammer asks you a lot of questions about yourself. This is because the more information they know about you, the easier you will be to manipulate. The scammer will spin a tale about him or herself as well. Eventually, you begin speaking over the phone. This stage can last for weeks, even months.
• The discussion is friendly at first but turns romantic very quickly. They shower you with compliments and claim to be falling in love with you. Victims usually report that this shift occurs very early on in the relationship – so if it all seems to be happening too fast, it might very well be a scam.
• Their story, or parts of it, change over time. If someone is making up their life story, it can be easy to forget what they’ve said before. If some part of their story doesn’t sound quite right or match what they said last month, that could indicate they are lying.
• Their grammar and spelling are poor. Many scams originate overseas. If the scammer tells you they’re from the UK but writes as if English is not their first language, this should be a red flag.
• They refuse to Skype or video call you, or meet in person. They always find an excuse as to why they can’t do this.
• Eventually, the scammer asks you to lend them money. They use any number of reasons: they need help to pay for the flight or other transport to meet you. They are in some sort of trouble. They need money to pay for medical care, either for themselves or someone close to them. Or they have a great business or investment opportunity that could benefit both of your futures.

https://www.ourwatch.org.uk/crime-prevention/crime-types/scams/protecting-against-scams/romance-fraud

Claims surged 10%, with 90 cases detected daily across multiple insurance lines.

With scams and other illegal activity continuing to rise, Allianz UK says that it has identified 33,027 instances of insurance fraud in 2024, amounting to £157.24 million in total value.

The insurer reported an average of 90 fraud cases per day, equating to £430,000 daily. The company says that this represents a 10% increase from the £142.38 million recorded in 2023.

Fraudulent activity spanned Allianz’s personal, commercial, and specialty lines, with claims fraud – where policyholders either inflate or fabricate claims – accounting for over £141 million. Application fraud, which involves providing false information when purchasing a policy, exceeded £15 million in detected cases.

The rise in fraud cases is not isolated to one insurer, either. Recently, not-for-profit insurer Ecclesiastical said that its claims specialists prevented over £4 million in fraudulent claims during 2024, an increase of nearly £1 million compared to 2023.

Valued at trillions of dollars per year, public procurement spending is a magnet for fraud. At a recent ICAEW event, leading experts shared insights on how to combat the problem.

Public procurement accounts for 13% of GDP across Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, representing a third of their total government expenditure.

Independent charity the Open Contracting Partnership (OCP), which works in more than 50 countries to ensure fair dealing on public contracts, values total global public procurement spending at a whopping $13tn per year – a sum that inevitably attracts large-scale pilfering.

On International Anti-Corruption Day last year (9 December), ICAEW members gathered at Chartered Accountants’ Hall to hear how that vast financial flow is exploited by bad actors. Representatives from both the OECD and OCP outlined the risk factors driving public procurement fraud and corruption. They also presented strategies for government bodies to strengthen their defences.

An organised crime group that fraudulently obtained over £320,000 through a 'crash for cash' scheme has pleaded guilty to fraud charges, according to the London City police.

Raju Patel and Kamlesh Vadukul, who led the group, submitted insurance claims and applications to a vehicle repair finance service for road traffic collisions that were either staged or never occurred. The remaining eight members either orchestrated the collisions or provided their details to facilitate the fraudulent claims.

An investigation by the City of London Police's Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department (IFED) led to guilty pleas from two members of the group at Birmingham Crown Court:

Kamlesh Vadukul, 36, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation and money laundering.

Amarjit Dhaliwal, 45, also known as Amo Singh, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation.

The other members initially denied the charges, but during the first week of their trial, they also submitted guilty pleas:

Integrated system aims to boost efficiency and disrupt organised fraud networks.

The Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) has announced plans to introduce a unified counter-fraud solution in partnership with Shift Technology.

Scheduled for launch in 2026, the new platform will integrate the IFB’s industry-wide counter-fraud databases into a single system aimed at strengthening fraud detection and streamlining investigative processes across the insurance sector.

The consolidated platform will combine insurers’ transactional, suspected, and confirmed fraud data with fraud investigation case management. IFB explained that this integration is designed to improve fraud detection capabilities and make counter-fraud operations more efficient and effective across the industry.

Last year saw landlords struggle with a huge rise in tenancy fraud, particularly in London, research reveals.

The findings from Homeppl, a tenant referencing platform, found that its technology helped clients avoid £16.9 million in losses due to fraud.

It says that for every £1 spent on the firm’s technology, clients saved £22.60.

The biggest issue facing landlords is that 94% of fraud cases involved forged documents – doctored bank statements being the most common.

Most tenancy frauds are in London

The data reveals that 60% of all flagged fraud cases originated in London, with west London experiencing a substantial increase.

Homeppl says that the west London accounted for 40% of all London-based fraud cases.

Also, the average fraudster targeted properties with an annual rental value of £37,598, claiming falsified incomes of £85,945.

https://www.property118.com/landlords-saw-a-big-surge-in-tenancy-fraud-last-year/

Those using the platform Booking.com to book their holidays or accommodation are being warned they could be targeted with emails or messages requesting payments from hotels who have had their account taken over by fraudsters. Between June 2023 and September 2024, Action Fraud received 532 reports from individuals, with a total of £370,000 lost.

Insight from Action Fraud reports suggests the individuals were defrauded after receiving unexpected messages and emails from a Booking.com account belonging to a hotel they had a reservation with, which had been taken over by a criminal. Using this account, the criminals send in-app messages, emails, and WhatsApp messages to customers, deceiving them into making payment and/or requesting credit card details.

The specific account takeovers are likely to be the result of a targeted phishing attack against the hotel or accommodation provider, and not Booking.com’s backend system or infrastructure.

A Norwich loss adjuster used the names of his wife and deceased father-in-law to defraud almost £200,000 as part of a series of insurance scams.

Justin Boydell, 51, falsely set up a series of bank accounts using the names of family members without their knowledge to launder the proceeds of fake claims.

Norwich Crown Court was told the highly qualified professional used his ability to sign off insurance assessments to approve claims for made-up water leaks at properties he had never visited.