Landlords urged to protect against 'property thieves' after mortgage adviser is convicted of £500k scam

Published 19th Jul 2011

Fraudster Feruza Mettrick was jailed for five years last week, after attempting to scam lenders out of millions by stealing landlords’ identities, in a case heard at Leeds Crown Court.

On the back of this case, landlords are being advised to check that their properties are correctly registered with the Land Registry to protect from possible registration fraud and ID theft.

This involved a fraudster impersonating the real owner of a property, they can take out a mortgage against it, keep the money and vanish, leaving the real owners with a huge debt.

According to Landlord Assist, identity and registration fraud is increasing at an alarming rate and landlords should be alert to the risks.

Over the past five years, reports suggest that the Land Registry has been forced to pay out over £26million in compensation to victims of property fraud.

Landlords and buy-to-let property owners are particularly vulnerable to registration and identity theft, as it is easier to commit when owners are known not to occupy a property themselves.



The property thief

Properties most likely to be targeted are those with no outstanding loans or borrowing against them.

In most instances, fraudsters aim to acquire the title to a property either by using a forged transfer or by impersonating the registered owner.

In cases of identity theft, fraudsters have been known to use the landlord’s name and the rented property’s address to apply for loans, including credit cards and borrowing from banks.

The case of Feruza Mettrick last week highlighted the need for landlords to stay vigilant.The mortgage adviser-turned-con artist, searched for properties which had no outstanding loans or borrowing against them via letting agents in the Leeds area.

She then rented properties using fake documents and attempted to obtain mortgages for the properties by pretending to be the real owner.

Mettrick managed to obtain over £500,000 using this method, but failed to defraud the total of £2.4million she would have done if all of her scams were successful and she wasn't caught.

One scam saw her take on the identity of a 67-year-old woman who owned a detached bungalow in Harrogate – and she managed to dupe the lender into giving her a £120,000 home improvement loan.

And in some of the cases, attempts were made to sell off properties without the real owners even being aware this was happening.

Mettrick was finally found out after Leeds Building Society reported its suspicions to police. She was then arrested claiming to be someone else in an Royal Bank of Scotland branch in Harrogate in September last year.

She was wearing glasses and a wig in the branch - a plot which would be more suited to a Hollywood film. She had with her various fake identity documents and seven mobile phones.

Initially, Merrick refused to cooperate with the police but eventually pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud.

Mettrick had two male accomplices, but Nick Worsley, prosecuting at Leeds Crown Court said that she was the main player in the fraud and having experience as an independent financial adviser meant she had in-depth knowledge of financial matters.

When investigated, it was found out that the money had been transferred to accounts in both the Channel Island and Latvia.


A warning to landlords

Graham Kinnear, managing director at Landlord Assist, said: ‘Buy-to-let is one of the most popular forms of investment in the UK but it can also be fraught with danger - the case of Feruza Mettrick is testament to this.

‘Properties are the most valuable asset that people own so not surprisingly are an attractive target for criminals.

‘By impersonating the real owner of a property, fraudsters can take out a mortgage against a property they do not own, keep the money for themselves and leave the real owners with a huge debt and having to answer to a mortgage company that thinks they have a charge over the property.

‘For their own peace of mind and to safeguard their business, landlords should be vigilant and take every possible measure to prevent identity theft.’

To protect against fraud risks, landlords should have an appropriate correspondence address noted with the Land Registry to ensure that they get notified should anyone attempt to try and interfere with their title to the property.

In addition, owners may include in their title a ‘restriction’ requiring the Land Registry not to register any change to the title, including change of ownership or mortgage, without their consent.

The service is free and can save a landlord hours of aggravation and stress.

Source: ' ThisIsMoney '

View All Latest Articles