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Estate agency picketed over disputed ‘No DSS’ rejected tenant

Tenant who is supported by Acorn claims discrimination but agency says she failed referencing process.

Nigel Lewis

oxford acron no dss

An estate agency in Oxfordshire is the latest to be picketed by tenant advocacy group Acorn, this time over alleged ‘No DSS’ discrimination against a tenant in receipt of Universal Credit.

Members of the group gathered outside the industrial estate premises of John Charles Property Investment in support of mother-of-two Edwina Cobb (pictured).

She had applied to rent a property advertised by the company but was told two days before she was due to move in that the tenancy at the Abingdon property would not be going ahead.

Acorn allege that the company’s actions are an example of ‘No DSS’ discrimination against Cobb, who due to move into the property last week and now faces becoming homeless.

“My only option is to fight collectively through Acorn,” she told the Oxford Mail.

But the agency tells a different version of events. John Charles Property Investment says Cobb was rejected because of ‘contradictory’ information about her previous landlord and income references.

Multiple inconsistencies

“The application from Ms Cobb was rejected due to multiple inconsistencies, it was not due to fluctuating universal credit,” it says.

“An application from another prospective tenant has now passed internal assessment and fraud checks.

“The board can only make an assessment based upon the evidence it is presented with.”

The spokesperson said that the company was not discriminatory towards people of any background or income source.

Read more about ‘No DSS’ cases.

Pic Credit: Edwina Cobb via Acorn Oxford Twitter.

June 16, 2021

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