Royal Mail and the National Landlords Association (NLA) are warning tenants across the country to update their address details or take out a Redirection service when they move to help guard against identity theft and financial fraud
Advice follows news that mail and sensitive personal documents are amongst the most common items left behind
8% of landlords say they have found, or received, bank statements, payslips, utility bills, chequebooks and even passports when a renter has moved out
Clothes (14%), toys (14%) and animals (11%) top the list
Nearly one in 20 (5%) said they had to report an item they had found to the police
Royal Mail and the National Landlords Association (NLA) are warning tenants across the country to update their address details or take out a Redirection service when they move to help guard against identity theft and financial fraud; after a new survey reveals that mail and sensitive personal documents are the sixth most common item left behind by renters.
Nearly one in ten (8%) of the 1,364 landlords questioned stated that they have found, or received, sensitive personal information such as bank statements, payslips, utility bills, chequebooks and even passports when a renter has moved out. Nearly one in 20 (5%) said they had to report an item they had found to the police.
Richard Lambert, CEO of the National Landlords Association, said: “With a quarter of tenants moving on from a property after just a year, it is no surprise that many forget to inform their bank or building society of their new address.
“Recent ONS figures show that application fraud cases - when fraudsters open an account using fake or stolen documents in someone else's name - rose by 14% last year¹. This means that renters who don’t update their address details, or take out a Redirection service to their new home, are putting themselves at risk of identity theft leading to financial fraud.”
Clothes top the list with 14% of landlords finding among others things, underwear, socks and baby clothes around their properties.
Toys come a close second with more than one in ten (14%) property owners unearthing all manner of playthings from a giant seven foot teddy bear to a bouncy castle.
The third most common item is animals (11%). Landlords reported finding ferrets, snakes and even “a tank full of live pet sea monkeys” (a species of brine shrimp) in Cardiff.
The top ten items most commonly left behind when a tenant moves out are:
- Clothes (14%)
- Toys (14%)
- Animals (11%)
- Exercise equipment (10%)
- Furniture/bedding (10%)
- Mail and important personal documents (8%)
- Electrical items including kettles, fridges and TVs (7%)
- Food (7%)
- Cars and car parts (6%)
- Gardening/plants/tools (6%)
Other surprising items include the ashes of a dead relative, 14 car tyres, a L800 BMW, a 1964 Vauxhall Victor, 20 bikes, three didgeridoos, four sunbeds, two sets of false teeth, a drum kit and a prosthetic leg in Hemel Hempstead.
Jim Conning, Managing Director of Data Services, at Royal Mail, said: “It is interesting - and worrying - to see the range of items that tenants leave behind when moving on from a property.
We would always advise renters to not only think about the items they can see when they are moving but also the external services that are linked to the property in their name.
Taking out a Redirection means that your personal details come with you giving you the peace of mind to settle into your new place knowing that your identity and personal details are safe.”