Northern Ireland Housing Executive warns tenants about rent scam

The public has been warned about a rent scam targeting Northern Ireland Housing Executive (NIHE) tenants.

The NIHE said some of its customers have received unsolicited calls asking them to pay £10 extra in rent so it can carry out repairs to their homes.

The organisation told tenants that it would "never contact you out of the blue to ask for your personal information or bank details".

NIHE manages 85,000 homes and is Northern Ireland's biggest landlord.

On its website, it warned tenants that the fraudsters "may already have some information about you, and may pose as Housing Executive staff, or one of our contractors".

It said there may be attempts to convince customers to make payments over the phone, divulge more personal details or click on links sent to them via unsolicited emails.

"We will never call or email you to ask you for your bank account details to set up a direct debit for your rent account unless this is something you have requested from us first," the NIHE said.

It told tenants not to be afraid to end a call if they think it is suspicious, and requested that all such incidents are reported to them.

"If you receive a suspicious phone call or email from someone claiming to work for or represent the Housing Executive, report it to us by calling 03448 920 900," it said.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said while it had not received any reports to date, it would encourage people to be extremely vigilant.