With the increase in credit defaults and identity fraud it has never been more important for landlords to carry out tenant vetting, a process where a professional company carries out checks to verify whether a tenant has a history for CCJs, Bankruptcy or Insolvency.  Additionally and online agency can obtain identity verifications so that you know the tenant is who they say they are (in conjunction with a passport check – see below).

There are several companies providing online services to check tenants, but their services do vary, so here are some points to check for.

1 – CCJ, Bankruptcy and Insolvency checks.  Some companies will only use the tenant’s current address as a basis for a search, in these cases they cannot guarantee to find all CCJs that may relate to a tenant.  It is imperative that a “linked address search” in conducted, such searches look for address linked to the current address and then use those address to search for CCJs etc.  By carrying out a linked address search you can have much greater assurance about your tennant’s CCJ history.

2-  Identity.  Anyone can give you a name and date of birth as “their own”, you can check it online and it may come up clean.  But, is this their real name and address?  It is essential that you check photo ID for the tenant, not a workplace ID, but a Passport, failing that a Driving Licence (but these are more easy to fake than passports).

3- Financial stress. A tenant may not have any CCJs but they could be under considerable financial stress and thus risk of defaulting.  For example, a tenant may have 20 + financial accounts with mail order companies, credit cards, HP agreements, etc.  A high number of accounts suggest financial stress, especially when combined with a relatively low income.  To check for financial stress you need ensure the tenant credit check includes Insight, make sure the tenant checking company provides this option.

These above are just some of the points to be aware of for tenant vetting.  The bottom line is though the less you check the tenant, the greater the risk of a tenant defaulting.