Propertymark has written to the government expressing its disappointment that ‘sex for rent’ is not outlawed in the Crime and Policing Bill currently going through Parliament.

“We condemn this practice, and the Bill needs to be amended to address this issue to eliminate the practice through sharing intelligence and raising awareness” says the trade body, in its formal response to consultation over the measures contained in the Bill.

The Bill has wide ranging proposals addressing knife crime, violence against women and girls, anti-social behaviour, retail crime, serious and organised crime, fraud, theft, public order, terrorism and sexual offending.

But Propertymark wants it to go further and specify sex for rent as an offence. 

The trade body tells the government: “Most landlords who operate in the private rented sector are good and provide housing accommodation for a variety of people for a fair financial return. However, there is a small number of rogue and criminal landlords who do not adhere to these principles and exploit tenants especially those who are vulnerable including young women and tenants from overseas. 

“We recommended any landlords who engages with sex for rent should be charged under Section 52 and 53 of the Sexual Offences Act7, dealt with accordingly with criminal proceedings and banned from operating in the PRS for the future. Furthermore, the Online Safety Act 20238 includes sections 52 and 53 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 in a list of priority offences that internet companies will need to take proactive steps to tackle.in ensuring adverts for sex for rent is prohibited.

“While there have been developments in legislation to specifically tackle sex for rent, we believe that the Crime and Policing Bill could add extra provisions to protect vulnerable people impacted by sex for rent and to give perpetrators lifetime bans from providing accommodation in the future.

“In addition, extra provisions could provide sufficient resources for local authorities to enforce and investigate against sex for rent along side any health and safety checks that they provide. Secondly, providing relevant local authority officers including environmental health inspectors a specific route to refer suspected cases of sex for rent and finally an opportunity for the overwhelming number of responsible and professional landlords and their property agents to support investigations and cases by sharing intelligence and information.”

More generally, Propertymark tells government that letting agents and landlords are well placed to help in broad safeguarding of vulnerable tenants against, for example, modern slavery threats or drug gangs.

The body says: “We think that professional property agents such as Propertymark agents could be at the vanguard of protecting vulnerable tenants and supporting measures against such activities. We would be very happy to share the provisions within the Bill to our membership.

“Professional property agents are in a particularly strong position to identify vulnerable tenants susceptible … This could include training on spotting the signs of vulnerability including mental health issues, substance abuse, or being at risk of exploitation. We also encourage our membership to engage with tenants to assess any changes in behaviour, financial distress, or signs of exploitation can be noticed early. We already provide our

“Additionally, letting agents perform several standard checks (eg, credit, employment, references), which supports agents to assess the vulnerabilities of tenants when appropriate. This could be done by collaborating with support services, such as charities or local authorities, to identify tenants who may be at risk of exploitation. Agents should also have safeguarding policies in place and have built up relationships with both local authority Community Safety Teams and Safeguarding Teams to refer vulnerable tenants to local authorities when appropriate.

“Fundamentally, educating tenants about their rights and what to do if they suspect they are being exploited is crucial. Letting agents can provide materials or organize events that focus on safety and exploitation risks. Equally, we would be very happy to support any awareness raising though sharing and sign posting materials or through webinars or articles.”