Agent’s £167k fine for room switching scam
This room was used as bait to snare tenant The picture of this light and spacious bed-sitting room convinced a prospective tenant to pay a £740 deposit.
But Justin Wright was in for a shock when he arrived at the property in East London.
“My heart sank immediately I walked through the front door,” he said.
“There was mould everywhere, some floor boards were broken with two-foot gaps underneath, and the windows were filthy.”
He had been promised a ground floor room, which was important because, as a film maker, he would be moving heavy equipment.
Instead he was given a tiny room at the top of the building.
“The room was about a third of the size of the one offered, the plaster was blistered, the window was cracked and the smoke alarm faulty.
“It had the feeling of a crack den.” Because he was relocating from Nottingham, Justin had little choice but to move in.
He was there for six weeks before finding new accommodation and
awhen he moved out – to add insult to injury – his deposit was not returned. Now letting agency Sterling De Vere has been prosecuted for what trading standards officers in Tower Hamlet describe as a bait-and-switch scam.
It was fined £167,000 by Thames Magistrates Court after admitting breaking consumer protection regulations, and ordered to pay £740 compensation.
John Biggs, Mayor of Tower Hamlets, said: “This is a major victory for residents and for our trading standards team.
“It sends out a message that we can and will take the strongest action against letting agents who undertake this practice.”
In a separate case last September the company was fined more than £46,000 for renting out overcrowded rooms with no heating and inadequate fire precautions.
PS: Sterling De Vere is a trading name of SDV HQ Ltd, whose sole director is Juman Alam, 29.
On its website he’s described as “a friendly, approachable personality who always puts clients’ needs first”. COMPLAINTS Juman Alam