A tenant who did not pay rent and stole his landlord’s credit card to run up debt of more than £10,000, had an expensive Jaguar with a personalised numberplate on the drive of his rental property.
Michael Wild, 47, was only found out after the landlord went to court to try and get months of unpaid rent.
The judge at York Crown Court condemned the fraud, which began when Barclays sent the card to the address, which had been Paul Hardiment’s home before he rented it out to Wild.
Barclays had first sent the card, which was unsolicited, and then a few days later, the PIN.
Wild took the card for himself and bought shopping items, new tyres for his girlfriend’s car, and paid off gas bills.
Mr Hardiment, who had no idea that a Barclays card had even been issued in his name, only found that Wild had been using it when getting a county court order to obtain months of unpaid rent from his tenant.
When Mr Hardiment visited the property, he discovered a stack of bills and letters from the bank demanding repayments for £10,162 on purchases racked up between last September and December.
Nicholas Barker, defending, told the court that Wild had fallen on hard times and had used the credit cards to buy “quite mundane items”, and intended to pay the cash back. Mr Barker claimed: “This did not fund any high living.”
But Judge Stephen Ashurst, the Recorder of York, said: “I do not accept that.”
He said it must have been “extremely galling” for Mr Hardiment who, after having to pursue a county court case to retrieve rent from Wild, then found the statements.
The judge said: “This is while seeing a £62,500 Jaguar with Mr Wild’s personalised numberplate on the drive. This is a high-living case. Let’s call a spade a spade.”
The court heard Wild had since been employed in the city as a financial adviser, advising the elderly on trust laws and how to mitigate inheritance tax.
Wild pleaded guilty to fraud and theft. He was sentenced to four months’ imprisonment, suspended for two years, and ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work.
Judge Ashurst said he was restricted by sentencing guidelines on the punishment he could pass on, but added: “You are now publicly exposed as someone who is deceitful.”
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Comments
Barclays is to blame for sending an unsolicited credit card AND pin - chip and pin is useless when you send them to the theif. Barclays must write off the debt or take the to court.
It's worrying because I'm thinking of moving to another house and renting out my current one. I'm going to ensure that all organisations that I deal with know of my impending move.
It's a good job I came across this article.
At least the landlord only lost the rent. His credit card bill will be covered by Section 75 Consumer Credit Act 1974, and Barclays will take the hit on that.
What Don Robbie says is true, but the only losses you suffer are time and trouble. You CANNOT lose money with a credit card if you didn't do the transaction. And the proof standards (that it wasn't you) are not as rigorous as they are with bank current accounts.
It is no longer true that people only need your date of birth for a credit card. They now need a utility bill and official photo ID. Obviously the former probably would have been obtainable by the tenant in this case, but the landlords photo ID would not.
This is a very good example why all landlords must have a subscription with a credit agency such as Experian or Equifax. If a credit card is taken out in your name the bank will take up a credit check and you will be notified that this has been done. You can then take action if you do not recognise why the check has been made.
Please be aware (from bitter experience) that if someone has your name, address and date of birth, they can open a credit card in your name. If you life in an apartment, you are a prime target as thieves steal your post if it is let on concierge desk and look out for your credit card arriving.
Never use your real D of Birth on internet except for bank applications or where it will be checked out with credit agency etc!!
Those things happen. The landlord must move on and forget these things like tenents must forget substandard conditions and abuse by landlords. My heart bleeds for the landlord to be honest.
Aaah........So 4 months is the most the judge could impose on the poor chap!!!! Now if he had looted £10K worth of items..................!