COUNCIL home tenants who sub-let their local authority property are being warned they could be jailed and fined £50,000, as well as having to pay back any rent they’ve collected.

As well as committing fraud, offenders are cheating genuine people out of a home, according to a Taunton Deane Council spokeswoman.

She said: “When a tenant lets out their council home without the knowledge or permission of their landlord – Taunton Deane Council - they are unlawfully sub-letting.

“It is not fair to sub-let and to profit from a property where someone in greater need could live.

“If a person gets a council property by giving false information in their application they are committing housing fraud.

“This can include saying that more people live with you than in reality or not saying that you are renting a home from another council or housing association.

“When a tenant dies, there are rules that say what should happen to the tenancy. If someone tries to take over the tenancy when they have no right to do so, this is wrongly claimed succession.

“The council is working hard to stop housing fraud and ensure that homes go to the people who need them.”

You can be fined up to £5,000 for a first offence, but second time around you could be jailed for up to two years and fined up to £50,000, as well as being ordered to pay back any profits.

Cllr Terry Beale, the council’s executive member for housing services, said: “It costs on average £18,000 a year to house a family in temporary accommodation.

“There is huge pressure on the supply of social housing so it’s vital that the homes we do have available goes to people in genuine need.

“It’s totally wrong for people not to be living in housing intended for them and to be potentially illegally profiting from it at the same time.”

You can report housing cheats anonymously by e-mailing confidential@southwestaudit.co.uk or call 01935-462381.