Skip to content
Accessibility Help

  [Your account](https://account.bbc.com/account?lang=en-GB&ptrt=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.co.uk%2Fnews%2Farticles%2Fc6211ng49zwo)

Home
News
Sport
Earth
Reel
Worklife
Travel
Culture
Future
Music
TV
Weather
Sounds

More menu

Search BBC

Close menu

BBC News

Airbnb data identifies illegal social home sublets

Image source, Getty Images

Image caption,

Nearly 6,000 social homes in England are suspected of being illegally sublet on short-term rental platforms

Meghan Owen

London work and money correspondent

Published 8 hours ago

Local councils and Airbnb have begun sharing data to identify the illegal subletting of social homes on the short-term rental platform.

The scheme, coordinated by the Cabinet Office's fraud team, external, allows councils to cross-check social housing records against Airbnb listings in an effort to tackle what the government calls "social housing fraud."

It is suspected nearly 6,000 social homes in England are illegally sublet on short-term rental platforms, according to the Tenancy Fraud Forum, a not-for profit organisation.

Early results suggest 470 cases of social housing fraud have been identified so far across participating local authorities, with offenders facing penalties including eviction, fines and up to two years in prison.

However, some campaign groups say tackling illegal subletting will have "very little impact on the acute housing crisis."

According to the Cabinet Office, whether a tenant can sublet a room depends on the terms of their individual tenancy agreement and may require the council's permission, but subletting an entire social housing property is an offence.

Fraudsters could include people who have more than one home or are living abroad.

The government estimates on average, each case costs taxpayers around £78,300 - a figure which could include paying for temporary accommodation for genuine applicants, the legal costs to recover property, and rent foregone during the void period between tenancies.

Image caption,

Geraldine Geraldi said she has noticed lockboxes and a stream of people with suitcases

The Tenancy Fraud forum estimates at least 1,000 social homes are illegally advertised for short term lets on Airbnb in London over a period of a year, but if other platforms are included, this number is likely to be far greater.

BBC London has spoken to residents who are convinced illegal holiday lets are operating in their buildings.

They describe lockboxes appearing outside flats, a constant stream of unfamiliar people arriving with suitcases, and in some cases antisocial behaviour.

'Avoid detection'

Geraldine Girardi has lived in a mixed-tenure Notting Hill Genesis block in King's Cross for 26 years. A leaseholder and member of the Social Housing Action Campaign, she believes one social housing flat has been illegally sublet as short-term accommodation.

"Recently there's been lots of people coming and going with suitcases. They're not residents of the building."

She said residents had repeatedly found lockboxes attached to the building, which - - although can be used by housing associations or to help let carers into the building - are frequently removed and relocated to avoid being seen.

"It's really obvious someone's trying to avoid detection."

Girardi said the constant turnover of visitors has led to damage of communal area carpets, doors and entrances.

"Sometimes groups of six or eight people stay in a one-bedroom flat, and we're the ones paying through our service charges to repair the damage.

"This is public money being abused. It's good that it's being tackled, but it's a huge piece of work."

She stressed that when she contacted Airbnb about the listing, they were helpful.

Image source, Airbnb

Image caption,

BBC London has seen an advert on Airbnb which appears to be for a social home - although we cannot independently verify it's the same property.

BBC London has seen adverts on Booking.com and Airbnb which appear to be for a social home - although cannot independently verify it's the same property.

The BBC, posing as a customer, sent a message to the person believed to be renting out the flat asking about its availability over this summer. They said it was no longer being rented out but appeared to confirm that it had been.

They have not responded to a further request for comment.

Booking.com said property owners must confirm they have the right to list their property, and would "take the necessary action if they are found not to be operating in compliance with local laws".

Lisa Marçais from Airbnb said "social housing fraud" had "no place on Airbnb".

She added: "We're proud to have driven the first ever data-sharing agreement of this kind in partnership with the Cabinet Office and local authorities across the country, but to truly tackle this problem we need the entire short term rental industry to follow suit and participate in this initiative."

'Zero tolerance'

Notting Hill Genesis, the housing association that owns the block, said sub-letting without permission is against their tenancy agreements, and will only be granted in exceptional circumstances.

A spokesperson said: "We take a zero tolerance approach to tenancy fraud and the misuse of social housing, including where it is used for short-term lets. We will not allow vital social and affordable homes to be used for profit when so many thousands of households are desperate for a stable home.

It added it cannot discuss individual cases or potential investigations - which they "take incredibly seriously" - and "take action if proven".

Under the data-sharing programme, coordinated by the Public Sector Fraud Authority within the Cabinet Office, local authorities across London, as well as Edinburgh City Council, Birmingham City Council and Anglesey Council will work with Airbnb and listings confirmed as operating without permission will be removed.

Image caption,

BBC London was shown part of a wall where a lockbox for a suspected illegal sublet was situated

'Tip of the iceberg'

David Harvey from Westminster City Council, said the authority believes about 3,000 of the borough's 13,000 Airbnb listings are illegally sublet social homes.

He said all council tenancy and lease agreements prohibit short-term letting, and added that Westminster had 7,500 households on its waiting list for social housing.

"We want to free up those Airbnbs to be social homes again," he said.

Harvey described the new data-sharing arrangement as "just the tip of the iceberg", and housing officers had to "play detectives" by searching for lock boxes and speaking to neighbours to uncover suspected fraud.

More than 1.3 million households in England are currently on waiting lists for a social home, a rise of 10% in the past two years. Over 300,000 of those are in London.

The social housing action campaign said these homes "should be exclusively held for those in urgent need of housing, but the Cabinet Office's focus on the tiny proportion that are rented out as short term lets is a calculated distraction.

"Even though this happens on such a negligible scale, it really makes very little impact on the acute housing crisis."

Cabinet Office Minister Satvir Kaur said "This isn't an either/or.

"One in 20 social homes potentially are being used fraudulently. It's right and proper that we find those homes and use them for those who truly need them."

She added: "£39 billion is also being invested into a new social and affordable homes programme, with an ambition to deliver around 300,000 new homes over the programme's lifetime".

The Cabinet Office and the Public Sector Fraud authority said the data-sharing initiative was expected "to return hundreds of properties to genuine families in its first year" as councils could confiscate illegally-let flats and reallocate to someone on the social housing waiting list.

Get in touch

Have you been affected by the issues raised in this story?

Contact form

From other local news sites

Residents experience exclusive tour of Twickenham Riverside regeneration site

*   External [Twickenham Nub News](https://twickenham.nub.news/)

Neo-Nazi who planned mass gun attack jailed after MI5 undercover sting

*   External [London Evening Standard](https://www.standard.co.uk/)

How an architect couple transformed their house to be heatwave-proof

*   External [London Evening Standard](https://www.standard.co.uk/)

Lambeth win bronze in Netball and Indoor Rowing at London Youth Games 2026

*   External [Southwark News](https://southwarknews.co.uk/)

Londoner jailed alongside accomplice for stealing high-value cars in Kent

*   External [News Shopper](https://www.newsshopper.co.uk/)

The two south east London areas with the biggest rises in room rents

*   External [News Shopper](https://www.newsshopper.co.uk/)

Information about BBC links to other news sites

The video playlist

Watch our pick of standout clips from across the BBC

Previous Next

0:58 Paris hosts the Esports World Cup with eight weeks' notice. 00:00:58, play video Paris hosts the Esports World Cup with eight weeks' notice
0:55 Will this heatwave feel as hot and sticky as the last one? 00:00:55, play video Will this heatwave feel as hot and sticky as the last one?
1:14 Trump says ceasefire is over and calls Iranian leaders 'scum' 00:01:14, play video Trump says ceasefire is over and calls Iranian leaders 'scum'
0:58 UK waters could reach 5C warmer during marine heatwave. 00:00:58, play video UK waters could reach 5C warmer during marine heatwave
1:14 Count Binface intends to stand in Clacton by-election. 00:01:14, play video Count Binface intends to stand in Clacton by-election
1:01 Clacton's mixed views on Farage's resignation. 00:01:01, play video Clacton's mixed views on Farage's resignation
0:37 When is Flying Ant Day? 00:00:37, play video When is Flying Ant Day?
0:30 Why is it so hard to sleep when it's hot? 00:00:30, play video Why is it so hard to sleep when it's hot?
0:48 Nolan on whether cinema is 'dying' 00:00:48, play video Nolan on whether cinema is 'dying'
0:42 Marine Le Pen confirms run for French presidency. 00:00:42, play video Marine Le Pen confirms run for French presidency
0:42 Farage resigns as MP - what happens now? 00:00:42, play video Farage resigns as MP - what happens now?
1:26 Nigel Farage resigns to trigger by-election in which he will stand. 00:01:26, play video Nigel Farage resigns to trigger by-election in which he will stand
0:20 Chicken Caesar tacos. 00:00:20, play video Chicken Caesar tacos
0:53 The young beekeepers 'buzzing' in Belfast. 00:00:53, play video The young beekeepers 'buzzing' in Belfast
1:02 Who fired the first shot by the British Empire in WWI? 00:01:02, play video Who fired the first shot by the British Empire in WWI?
1:14'I sold everything to embrace van life' 00:01:14, play video'I sold everything to embrace van life'
0:44 How often do you get up from your desk? 00:00:44, play video How often do you get up from your desk?
0:47 These Taylor Swift wedding pictures are fakes. 00:00:47, play video These Taylor Swift wedding pictures are fakes
1:06 Venezuelan girl 'ate ketchup and cheese' to survive quake. 00:01:06, play video Venezuelan girl 'ate ketchup and cheese' to survive quake

Airbnb data identifies illegal social home sublets

Airbnb data identifies illegal social home sublets

'Avoid detection'

'Zero tolerance'

'Tip of the iceberg'

Get in touch

Related topics

From other local news sites

The video playlist

Top stories

More to explore

Elsewhere on the BBC

Most read

BBC News Services

We Care About Your Privacy

How and why we process data