Landlords have been urged to help stop illegal tobacco being sold from Oxfordshire shops by carrying out proper checks on tenants and acting quickly if they spot suspicious activity.

The warning follows a series of Oxfordshire County Council trading standards’ investigations into the supply and sale of illegal tobacco products where officers have found shops repeatedly selling counterfeit and smuggled tobacco.

Illegal tobacco is often linked to organised criminal groups, tax evasion, money laundering and exploitation. Criminal groups can try to hide their involvement by using ‘ghost’ directors, front companies, informal tenancy arrangements or third parties to pay rent.

Advised

Landlords are being advised to carry out appropriate due diligence before granting a new tenancy and verify and retain identification documents for tenants. They should know exactly who is occupying the premises, who is paying the rent and investigate where payments are made by someone other than the named tenant, suggests the council, and include clear provisions allowing action to be taken where criminal activity is identified.

It believes most landlords would be extremely concerned to learn that their premises were being used for organised criminality. It says if this is taking place from a property they own, it expects those concerns to be taken seriously and acted upon without delay.

Premises

Continuing to receive rent from a premises could give rise to alleged offences under money laundering provisions under the Proceeds of Crime Act, a spokesman tells LandlordZONE.

“So far, we have worked with landlords on their responsibilities and obligation, meaning that formal enforcement action hasn’t been needed, although one has received a warning,” she adds. “We’re not necessarily asking landlords to evict tenants but instead not to turn a blind eye and to review the terms of the leasehold agreement. If there is evidence that a premises is being used for criminal activity, landlords should take prompt and decisive action and seek appropriate legal advice rather than ignoring the issue.”

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