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South East students being warned of accommodation scams ahead of the academic year

South East students being warned of accommodation scams ahead of the academic year

By Cillian Doyle.

Gardaí are warning third-level students across the South East of accommodation fraud scams ahead of the 2021/2022 academic year.

It comes as a total of 503 cases of rental scams were reported between 1st February 2019 and 31st May 2021.

Almost half of the incidents occurred in the Dublin Region with just over €900,000 stolen in rental scams over the same time period.

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42% of students scammed were under the age of 25 while 72% were under the age of 35.

Gardaí say incidents have been declining in the last 18 months due to Covid-19 restrictions.

University of Limerick says it's optimistic that students will have an on-campus experience this semester, meaning more students will be seeking accommodation.

Colleges are due to resume in less than a month after being mainly online throughout the pandemic.

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Gardaí are advising people to be wary of rental scams, particularly at this time of year when students are returning to college.

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