In December 2021, the Home Office and Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) announced that from April 2022, landlords and letting agents would be able to delegate the identity verification element of their Right to Rent checks to Identity Verification Service Providers (IDSPs).
As an IDSP, we know there are huge benefits to adoption of digital identity verification technology. If you’re currently grappling with the legislative changes, here are a few things you may want to know.
“Digital identity verification conducted by IDSPs is the process of obtaining evidence of the prospective tenant’s identity, checking that it is valid and belongs to the person who is claiming it.”
‘Landlord’s guide to Right to Rent checks’, Home Office, Published on 6 April 2022
Why the change?
The announcement by the Home Office and DBS followed a review of the temporary measures put in place to support remote Right to Work and Right to Rent checks during the Covid-19 pandemic. The review found an overwhelmingly positive response from employers, letting agents and landlords to the new digital alternatives to manual ID verification.
With remote and hybrid ways of working now becoming a permanent part of the landscape, the UK government has taken this opportunity to roll out and promote the many benefits of IDVT.
When do the changes come into effect?
Although the new arrangements have been in place since April this year, the government decided to defer the deadline for the adjusted checks to 30 September 2022 to ensure landlords had sufficient time to develop commercial relationships with identity service providers, make the necessary changes to their pre-letting checking processes and carry out responsible onboarding of their chosen provider.
What are the advantages of digital identity verification technology?
There are huge benefits to digital ID verification – it’s safer and more consistently accurate which results in a reduction in fraud risk, and for those undertaking Right to Rent checks, it’s quicker and more convenient. What’s more, using an IDSP provides landlords with a continuous statutory excuse.
Up until now, the process of checking someone’s Right to Rent status has been mostly manual – which, can be laborious and time-consuming. It also relies on business owners and landlords being able to detect fraudulent documents, which is a heavy burden of responsibility and something even a trained eye finds difficult to get right every time.
The recent government consultation found that platforms such as HooYu are already using Identity Verification Technology (IDVT) highly successfully to battle fraud in regulated sectors such as banking and gambling and that there was no reason why the benefits shouldn’t be afforded to other sectors.
What will I need to do to comply with the law if I want to integrate IDVT?
If you don’t want to go back to checking documents manually, you’ll need to choose an IDSP to carry out digital identity checks on your behalf. Some checks may be eligible to be done alternatively, via the Home Office online services, but many applicants, including many British and Irish citizens will not be in scope to use that service.
The Home Office recommends that landlords only accept digital checks via an IDSP that satisfies a minimum of a Medium Level of Confidence. It is not mandatory for you to use a certified provider; you may use a provider not featured on the government list but as the landlord, it’s important to remember you remain liable for any civil penalty if there is no statutory excuse. Using a certified IDSP provides you with a statutory excuse.
Why choose HooYu?
At HooYu, the integrity of our systems means we’re already trusted by banks like NatWest and Virgin Money to verify their customers’ identities and conduct anti-money laundering data searches. We are currently in the process of receiving our government certification and expect to be one of the first providers in the country to achieve it.
As an IDVT service provider, we offer a wide choice of verification tools that achieve Medium and High Levels of Confidence, including document validation, online profile analysis, facial biometrics, traditional database checks and PEPS and sanctions screening. We recognise that different use cases and risk profiles call for different ID techniques. Our client portal has been specifically designed to help businesses configure settings without the need for technical expertise so you can customise, test and deploy different settings for differing customer scenarios and regulatory risk requirements.
By integrating the HooYu platform, you can feel confident you will be taking every available measure to ensure your Right to Rent checks are aligned with the new Government legislation and GPG45 guidelines, whilst at the same time providing your tenants with a branded, best in class user journey.
Our mission is to help more businesses owners see that the move to digital identity verification is an opportunity to build a much simpler, quicker, less labour-intensive, and more secure process. From our point of view at HooYu, it’s not just about checking documents behind the scenes, it’s about creating a great user experience too.
For more information or a demonstration tailored to your needs, contact martyn.white@hooyu.com
