Wiltshire letting agent jailed for theft

A Wiltshire letting agent has been jailed for 15 months for stealing from landlords and tenants.

Alison Bush, 45, pleaded guilty to two counts of theft and fraud at Swindon Crown Court last week.

She was hired by Townsend lettings as the sole employee to run a property portfolio in Trowbridge.

Colin Meeke, prosecuting, told the court: "Her responsibilities were really quite simple: to let the flats in a proper manner, collect deposits, pay them in, check references, making sure properties were let in a fit state and recovered in a fit state."

"Most importantly it was receive the rents and to account for them. It is the Crown's submission that this was not a difficult task to perform.”

However, Bush abused her position and stole more than £30,000 in rent that should have been passed to landlords. Much of the rent was paid in cash with many of the clients never having received correct receipts. Bush disputed the amount taken, claiming it was only half the stated amount.

The court heard how she also stole a £2,000 tax rebate sent to a tenant and took it to a cheque cashing shop with a fake power of attorney letter and pocketed the money.

Tenants campaign group Generation Rent has expressed concerns that Bush could return to work in the lettings sector when she is released from prison.

The group is calling for mandatory licensing of letting agents, including a fit and proper person test, in order to protect tenants and landlords and their money.

Dan Wilson Craw, communications manager at Generation Rent, said: “There is nothing stopping Mrs Bush from setting up a new letting agency as soon as she steps out of prison. For this reason, tenants have very little idea whether their letting agent has a shady past or if their money is at risk. Individual licensing of agents and better client money protection would go a long way to prevent other tenants from falling victim to fraud like this.”