Too few agents know Right To Rent changes

An industry supplier says the recent Right To Rent changes have flown under the radar - and many agents don’t know about them.

On October 1 the government removed the interim guidance implemented during the pandemic which allowed identity verification to take place via video call.

From the start of the month agents have been obliged to conduct Right to Rent checks manually, via the Home Office Online Scheme, or through an Identity Service Provider.

An IDSP uses digital technology - known as Document Validation Technology - to automatically check a prospective tenant’s right to rent. Right to Rent checks previously had to be conducted manually by the letting agent and completed while the prospective tenant was physically present in the room. Since the pandemic, video calls have been acceptable, but this is no longer the case and all checks must now been done either manually again, or by making use of the digital upgrade.

If agents fail to comply and an illegal immigrant is, therefore, able to rent a home, the punishment can be a fine and even prison.

Credas Technologies claims that a lot of publicity has been given to the Right to Work changes as they impact every company who employs staff, but less has been written about Right to Rent changes and this knowledge gap could cause real problems for letting agents who, as a result, fail to comply with the new rules.

Tim Barnett, chief executive of Credas, says: “The latest raft of changes make it much easier and faster for letting agents and landlords to complete the required Right to Rent and Right to Work checks. But, if the new rules aren’t followed, the punishments are severe.

“But it seems as though these changes have largely flown under the radar within the industry and there’s not a lot of information out there for agents compared to the Right to Work scheme.

“In situations like this, ignorance is not a valid excuse so any agents who aren’t aware of the changes face unlimited fines and even prison time for letting someone rent when they don’t have the legal right to do so.“