Sinn Féin spokesperson on Further and Higher Education, Mairéad Farrell TD, urged students and parents to be on the lookout for accommodation scams as they look for somewhere to rent for the coming academic year.

Responding to the warning from An Garda Síochána that 33% of accommodation fraud reports happen between August and September, Teachta Farrell said students and parents should ensure they exercise “extreme caution”.
 
Teachta Farrell stated:
 
“Some of the Garda statistics are quite frightening and I really hope nobody falls victim to these fraudsters.
 
“For example, last month, 12 victims reported a loss of €20,746, an average of €1,729 each. The largest amount lost was €3,685 while the smallest was €380.

“This is heart breaking for them, and I would urge students and parents to be vigilant.
 
“Be on the lookout for things like websites which don’t appear to be genuine, people contacting you through social media with offers, the landlord being unable to show you the property in person and putting you under serious pressure to pay upfront in advance of signing any lease.
 
“Other things to look out for is a request for payment through sources like PayPal, Western Union, Amazon gift cards, that kind of thing.
 
“Finding accommodation is difficult enough without the additional stress of falling prey to some scam artist.

“Don’t start the coming academic year on the wrong foot. Take care, demonstrate caution and only use legitimate sources for helping you find accommodation.”