Students warned to brace for spike in accommodation fraud

Gardaí are warning people to be wary of rental scams, particularly at this time of year when students are returning to college.

This is the worst time of the year for people losing money to fraudulent rent transactions.

Rental fraud occurs when a victim pays money to rent accommodation (typically in the form of a deposit) and subsequently discovers that the transaction was fraudulent.

Last month in Ireland, 12 victims reported loss of €20,746 – average of €1,729 each – largest amount was €3,685 and smallest was €380.

Ten of these victims were Irish-based and lost €15,231 or an average of €1,523 each. Two (2) foreign-based victims were moving to Ireland and they lost €5,515 between them. At least 8 of the 12 victims were deceived through social media / online advertisements or contacts.

Approximately one third of all accommodation fraud reports occur during August – September each year.

Another scam to watch out for is reservation fraud which occurs when a person pays for a hotel/guesthouse room and subsequently discovers that the transaction was fraudulent. For example, the property doesn’t exist or staff at the property have no record of the booking.

The Garda National Economic Crime Bureau (GNECB) advises that there are a number of red flags/warning signs:

• If the rent seems too good to be true then it probably is – there is no such thing as cheap accommodation especially in urban areas.
• It’s only advertised through social media or the person letting the location will only communicate via Messenger or WhatsApp. You should push for direct answers and if responses are vague disengagement immediately.
• Where your knowledge of it came from an unsolicited contact / social media feed / pop-up advert or where the contact appears to be based in other jurisdictions.
• There is a sense of urgency like “a one-time offer”.
• The listing contains grammar or spelling mistakes and/or there are very limited details or pictures of the property.
• The landlord is unable to meet up to show you the property in person.
• When communication is only through text / WhatsApp or other social media platforms.
• When the property is offered with no questions asked and payment demanded immediately before signing the lease.
• When you are asked to pay cash, cryptocurrency or money via a non-bank transfer (such as wire transfer).
• Where the bank account you are asked to send the money to is in a different country.

Advice for people who are looking for accommodation:

• Do your own research on the advertisement and the property.
• Only use recognized letting agencies or deal with people who are bona fide and trusted ie, the college or student unions.
• Be wary of cloned websites: ensure the site is real – check the URL, look for the trust seals; check the privacy policy, refunds policy section, contact sections, even for spelling errors; check the website’s policy on refunds.
• Know your consumer rights. They are protected if a legitimate site is used.
• If you have decided to take up the offer only use trusted money transfer systems – An Garda Síochána would recommend using a credit card.
• Never agree to rent a property without first having the opportunity to view it.
• Ensure that the keys work and you have proper contact details for the landlord/agent.
• Ideally the property would be registered with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB). This can be checked on their website.
• Fully research the area to find out what the average asking prices are and compare to the advertisement/offer.
• Ideally, meet with the landlord for a tour of the accommodation. If this is not possible for some reason (this reason should be on your part, the landlord has no excuse), ask as many verifiable questions as possible such as: What bus routes are nearby? What local facilities are there (supermarkets etc)?
• Ask for the exact address and verify the existence of the property. Check Google maps to see that the property is the same as that advertised. Reverse image search any posted images to see if they appear elsewhere on the internet.
• The RTB rent index provides students with important benchmark information and is an authoritative guide as to the current rents being charged by landlords adjacent to all universities and other third level colleges.

Advice on Payment Methods:

• Do not hand over cash or make a Revolut payment or send money to an account or pay by cryptocurrency – pay in a way that is traceable and/or refundable.
• Insist upon a proper receipt and a tenancy agreement (get someone to look at it if you are unfamiliar with tenancy agreements).
• Don’t enter into off-site communications for a lower cash price.
• Never give personal, financial or security information to persons who are unknown to you.
• Never transfer money direct, pay cash, iTunes vouchers or pay into cryptocurrency wallets.
• Be wary if a website is asking you to send money to a random PayPal address or asking you to wire it by Western Union or pay in iTunes gift cards or asking you to pay for long-term rental accommodation via a short-term letting website or only deals in cryptocurrency. Most of the time, those methods are done to avoid scrutiny and ensure that a transaction can not be reversed.
• Always report it to Gardaí and your bank and ask your bank to do a recall as soon as possible.

Students warned to brace for spike in accommodation fraud was last modified: August 9th, 2024 by Staff Writer