by Airbnb and Booking.com have been accused of facilitating fraud by refusing to take action against social housing tenants who illegally let properties to holidaymakers.
Local authorities and social housing providers claim that the platforms are refusing to co-operate with requests to remove illegally listed holiday lettings and, as a result, are taking safe homes away from homeless families.
It is a criminal offense for tenants to rent council or housing association accommodation.
Tenants are required to inform councils and housing associations if a property is no longer required as a permanent residence, but some are being held illegally to earn income.
One tenant was found to be advertising his housing association property for £4,000 a week, which he had never lived in, according to campaign group the Tenancy Fraud Forum (TFF).
It estimates that each fraudulent letting of a home costs taxpayers an average of £42,000 over three years. The fraud can invalidate building insurance as well as cause anti-social behavior in neighbours.
“I recently reported an illegal vacancy to Airbnb and explained that it was a criminal offence, but they refused to remove the listing and told me to speak to the host,” said housing association lawyer and TFF chair Katrina Robinson. “Airbnb puts profit before conscience.”
The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London spent an estimated £20,000 securing a court order before Airbnb cooperated with a fraud crackdown on two of its estates in 2022. It said the US lettings giant was still refusing to remove offending listings. the Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Act.
“We have tried to set up a data sharing benchmark pilot with Airbnb to help us spot reported tenancy fraud,” said a Council spokesman. “Currently this is not working as we would like and we are not sharing data. We have 3,000 people on our housing register, and we know that letting companies have data that will help us tackle cases of tenancy fraud and free up badly needed homes.”
Airbnb’s terms and conditions state that host personal information may be shared to prevent fraud, but the company insists that privacy laws prevent it from giving data to landlords without a court order. Under the Data Protection Act, personal data can be lawfully shared with relevant law enforcement authorities.
“Airbnb seems to think that the Data Protection Act does not apply to them,” said Stephanie Toghill, housing investigations manager for Islington council.
A north London council also had to spend thousands of pounds applying for a court order for the firm to help them identify suspected illegal subdivisions. “Every case of tenancy fraud has a huge impact on council budgets, which have to fund temporary accommodation for thousands of people on housing waiting lists.”
Booking.com has also refused to remove illegal listings or share information, according to housing providers who spoke to the Guardian.
Residents in a London block owned by the Notting Hill Genesis housing association claim that a succession of guests arriving at one illegal sub-let has caused regular disturbances and damaged communal areas.
“We are afraid to live here because of the unsavory people who rent and the numerous guests who come in day and night,” said one resident, who did not wish to be named. Notting Hill Genesis told the Guardian that Booking.com said it would not remove the listing without permission from the fraudulent host.
Critics said Airbnb and Booking.com could prevent property fraud by asking hosts for proof of ownership. Both companies have so far refused to do so, despite the fact that the Accommodation Agencies Act requires the owner’s consent before a property is advertised. They claim they are not accommodation agents, but the Department for Upgrading, Housing and Communities told the Guardian it expected businesses to comply with the applicable terms of the Act.
Airbnb said in a statement: “Airbnb requires all hosts to have the relevant permissions to share their homes. Issues are rare and we take appropriate action when concerns are raised.
“Airbnb is also at the forefront of our industry in working with governments and authorities to help them access data and enforce the rules, including supporting the UK government’s work on a host register, and working with local councils numerous and with the Public Sector Fraud Authority to tackle social housing. abuse.”
Booking.com said it had suspended the listing reported by Notting Hill Genesis pending an investigation.
“When a property owner chooses to list with us, they must confirm that they have the right to list their property,” said a spokesperson. “We have a robust process in place for authorities to report any listings they may be concerned about and we are looking into why the complaint with Notting does not appear to have been raised through our proper internal channels Hill Genesis, which may result in delays. .”
