The property management company Rendall and Rittner has made a statement to LKP about its former executive Simon van Houten, 31, who faces jail next week after pleading guilty to stealing £122,000 at the Old Bailey.
A spokesman for the company said: “Mr Van Houten abused the trust of both clients and colleagues. Rendall and Rittner Limited immediately reimbursed the small number of clients involved and we are delighted that the police have successfully prosecuted the case we presented to them in 2010 and that justice has now been done.”
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Unfortunately, Rendall and Rittner’s parsimonious and self-serving response (they are “delighted …..”) doesn’t answer the vexed question of why senior managers not only failed to stop Van Houten to engage in large scale theft from a “small number of clients” but did not carry out the necessary checks before entrusting him with sensitive training of junior staff prior to sitting their IRPM exams. Nor does it answer questions as to the checks and balances Rendall and Rittner have now put in place to prevent their property managers from stealing client money. Nor does it tell us whether the £122,000 that Van Houten admits to have stolen is the full extent of the fraud against lessees’ Service Charge and Reserve funds managed by Rendall and Rittner.
I am totally amazed at how this has come about.
Would like to get in touch with Ms.Sue Stukey to get more information.
The question Rendell & Rittner have to answer is ” Who approved this bogus contractor for their company and what checks were made (of the contractor)” .Fraudulent people will allways seek to defraud, it is up to respectable firms to ensure the systems are adequate to prevent it.
I have now asked ARMA’s ceo Michelle Banks for guidance on this and related matters. She is due to address their conference in October on proposed guidelines for industry self-regulation.