25/01/2016 Inside Out London

Hello, I'm Matthew Wright, you're watching Inside Out.

Here's what's coming up on tonight's show.

Cheap rentals at prices too good to be true.

Too cheap, you wouldn't get a garage for that.

We expose how fake landlords are ripping off desperate tenants.

Why are you trying to defraud innocent people out of thousands of

pounds? Swapping soccer boots

for ballet pumps. How one leading dancer

is breaking down barriers. You introduce ballet to children

that are less affluent or from other backgrounds, it is so important.

Should older drivers be made to resit their tests?

What difference would it make to your life if you lost your license

or not able to drive? I think I would just go into a deep

depression, to be quite honest. Finding a decent home to rent can be

hard enough at the best of times. But imagine how you'd feel

if the flatshare that you'd forked out a big deposit for turned out

to be completely bogus. Well, an Inside Out investigation

has discovered that fraudsters are now posing as fake landlords

in order to scam unsuspecting victims out of hundreds,

or even thousands of pounds. Finding affordable homes to rent

in London's red hot housing market Soaring rents and a chronic lack

of properties mean for many, flat sharing with strangers

is the only economical option. The problem is that has come

with fraud, targeting those who are absolutely desperate

for somewhere to live. We've spoken to numerous tenants

and homeowners who have been stung by what appears to be a growing army

of bogus landlords on the web. Nikola lives in a small bedsit,

25 miles from But it was all supposed

to be very different. He saw an advert on EasyRoommate

for his dream home I was telling my friends and people

at work that I'm going to finally move to London, I found that place,

for that price, it's really good, it looks amazing, I was willing

to take the flat without a viewing just based on the picture based

location, just based on The landlady said scores

were interested and to send ?600. When he arranged to meet her,

she didn't show up. Anger, disgust,

was really disappointed. I remember sending an e-mail

to this person, saying I was at the flat,

you weren't there and then I realised obviously the cost of it

all for me and I was thinking, wow, I've spent money

I couldn't afford and what's happening

to me right now? I'm in a nightmare

and I can't wake up. And we've spoken to numerous

others who have gone EasyRoommate is one of the UK's

largest flat sharing websites. They are very experienced,

they are very sophisticated and they are also adapting very

fast, they are very creative, so we need to make sure the team

are experienced enough to cope We've picked a couple of online

adverts to show this estate agent Allen Street, South Kensington,

?700 per calendar month. You wouldn't get a garage

for a price like that. And what did he make

of another one in Willesden? There's something fishy about it,

something not right, as they say they do with

a large proportion. But we will be

investigating further. So I'm going to send a message

to both the landlords of the Kensington

and Willesden flats. We've set up a fake account

in the name of a student, called Martha, so let's

see what happens. It doesn't take long -

within a few hours, I get my first response from the

Kensington landlady. And I also hear from the

Willesden landlord, Gary. Over the next few days,

I enter into communication Both make it clear

they want a deposit. Luise, the Kensington landlady,

also sends a copy of her passport. We showed the agreement

to a contracts expert. Well, it has the basic elements

of a tenancy agreement. The person who drafted it has used

and has looked at other tenancy agreements, seen what has gone

in and you can easily be convinced And Nikolas was sure it was a valid

document when he handed It was realistic and

professional, certainly, yeah. Everything of it until

the moment I realised it. Off trendy Kensington High Street,

I check out the block we're hoping to rent in one of London's most

exclusive addresses. And I also get to the

house in Willesden. Our researcher is posing as Martha

to try and set up a viewing. Yeah, but I'd really

like to see the apartment. Hi, Luise, it's Martha

calling, how are you? If I could get to see it just before

I start with the payment process? Despite Luise's refusal to let us

in, we go and check out the flat. She told us there is just one flat

on the third floor. What's more, the whole block

is owned and managed And at the second

place in Willesden... We've got a room for

rent here, apparently. Gary told us it is one apartment,

no-one else there. No-one knows what on Earth

we are talking about. Homeowners tell us how

pictures of their house are being plastered

all over the internet. It was sort of mid to late afternoon

and there was a knock on the door and there was a young

woman there and she said that she was interested in the room

that we had to rent. So we said there wasn't a room

to rent and she was also under the impression that the house

was divided up into two flats. We were really puzzled as to why

a false picture of the interior of our house is being put

up on the internet. So at that point, it became evident

that there was some kind of scam. Remember the passport

pictures Luise posted us? Using Facebook, we track

the picture and name to a Luise So, I've been trying to contact

who I believe to be the real Luise. She has written back

to me from Berlin. And what about Gary,

our Willesden landlord? We have enlisted this internet

expert to try and find out We need to start up our

e-mail exchange again. We've created a special website

with pictures of dry rot on it. If he clicks on the site,

we can track him down. He visited our website

and using the information we have So, he's been saying

the whole time he is in London, but he is

absolutely not in London? We got his IP address

and it traces him on the map to Lagos Island

and probably that very road there. So, we are going to

have to move quickly now and we've told Gary we are about

to do the transfer to him. But just before we hand

?1000 straight to his account, we've told him that we'd

like to have a bit of a chat. Before I do the transfer,

I just wanted to ask No, no, no, we are not

complicating things at all. I just wanted to check

one more thing. Well, I'm calling

from the BBC and I just wanted to ask you why your IP says

you are in Lagos, Nigeria. How can you be in both

London and Nigeria? And I just wanted to know why

it is you are trying to defraud innocent people out

of thousands of pounds. We have now handed over all details

about Gary and Luise With thousands of homes

being rented over the internet, companies are battling to shut down

fake adverts as quickly as they can. Reports of this kind of fraud have

surged over the last So, if you are looking

to rent a flat and it seems too good to be true,

chances are it probably is. And if you head to the

BBC London Facebook page, you'll find some useful tips on how

to avoid being scammed Now then, still to come

on tonight's show... In parts of the good old US of A and

even as far away as New Zealand, some older drivers have to take a

road test. In Europe there are countries like Italy, Portugal and

the Netherlands that insist on older drivers having a medical

examination. For many of us, any mention

of ballet conjures up a world of tutus, ruffles and pumps,

a world that often seems elitist and accessible only

to the rich and privileged. But one man is on a mission

to change all that. Eric Underwood is a world-renowned

soloist with the Royal Ballet and he wants more kids from

less affluent backgrounds, and more boys,

to give ballet a whirl. But as he discovered,

turning a group of Hackney football fanatics into the dance stars

of tomorrow is a serious challenge. in a small but revealing

social experiment. We are going to show you

a short clip of a group So, the headteacher is now showing

them a ballet with all male dancers and I am really, really curious

to see if they will get the giggles Just what their take is on

male dancers doing ballet. That little boy there has

his eyes glued to the screen, I'm going to go in

and tell them a bit about myself and that

I dance ballet. I am originally from America,

but I live here now, and I am a ballet dancer, much like

you just saw. It is a bit different that men

are doing ballet dancing, because you don't really

see it a lot on TV. I was surprised when I saw

it was all men dancing. I thought it was,

like, girls dancing. To be honest, their views

do not surprise me. I was a lot like these

kids at their age. I didn't come from a family

that was super arts inclined or anything like that,

so when I started dancing, I was 14, it was quite

late, and I think coming from a neighbourhood where it wasn't

expected of me to be a ballet dancer Ballet has given me

an opportunity to see the world. I have been able to

provide for my family. It has given me a chance

to work with photographers and have a career

as a model as well. I can't think of anything else

I would have done. Back in my day, opportunities

for boys to get involved in ballet were limited, but things

are now slowly changing. This is the UK's first and only

boys' ballet school. Every week, the students

here give up their I've changed quite

a lot because of it, because it is so

physically demanding. I like ballet, because there

is lots of spins and jumps, I watched a video of Serge Pilani

and that got me really inspired. For most kids, however,

especially those from deprived backgrounds, ballet isn't top

of their cultural hit list. I am heading back to Berger School

in the hope of discovering a few boys who could pursue

a successful career in ballet. I am off to a good start,

as the school sees the value We are a very creative

school and a lot of local children crave that

creativity, as they know that is sometimes

going to be the way out for them and hopefully

to a better life. The teachers may approve,

but what about the boys? Will they be willing

to give up a football session Lots of turnout, lots

of kids, this is great! I'll show you the five

positions of ballet. I'm putting them through their

paces, because I'm trying to find I am looking for the pupils

who have enthusiasm, strong core muscles and, of course,

flexibility. So, what is the verdict

from my first students? Yeah, I think it was quite

good, I didn't mind it. It was good because we got to learn

how to do spins and the splits and we got to know

different stretches. If I do become a ballet

dancer when I am older, It seems like I am starting

to change these boys' opinions of ballet, but if any

of them do decide to follow than my footsteps,

they will have to be prepared I think ballet is a closed shop,

because many parents cannot afford to pay for their kids

to do these classes. Parents need to have the money

to take their kids There is very little diversity

on stage and I think this When I started in

ballet, there were few role models who looked like me,

and even now as a successful dancer, I still have to deal

with issues of diversity. It is a little known fact

but in the UK ballet pumps are only Most black and Asian dancers get

round this by using make-up to paint their ballet shoes

so they become a closer match to their skin tones,

but today I have come to collect my first

pair of bespoke shoes. I think the colour,

you've done really well. I can probably go

a little bit darker. So, these are fantastic,

I'm excited. My partners will be

incredibly excited as well, because now they will match really

well and the make-up doesn't I am here on my second

visit to the school. So, I'm wondering how

many of them will actually turn up today

and how many of them Class two, and the turnout is even

better than the first lesson. There are several

gifted kids in this class, but I think I have found two

who have the potential to make it. Myself and the staff had ideas

of who would be the perfect pupil for you, and we didn't include those

two, strangely enough. So, this chap here,

he seems really keen, which I have to say,

I was surprised about. If you look there, Kaden

is capable of finishing directly, really clearly,

without being instructed. And it is interesting now you have

picked him out there, you can see the difference

between them. This guy here has got

an incredible amount of turnout It's time to tell my two

potential proteges the news. I've come here and I've watched

loads of people dancing. You saw how many other

guys were here, yeah? And out of all those

guys, I thought that you guys had an incredible,

incredible amount of talent. What do you think of a career

as a ballet dancer? You play rugby?

Oh, that's really cool. Well, that was not quite

the reaction I expected. I was hoping they would

be more enthusiastic. Perhaps that's because they have

already discovered their passions. Outside of school, Kaden has several

hobbies, including skating. Ballet takes complete dedication

and he may not be ready It's something I wouldn't have

thought to put Kaden into, If it's something he wants to

pursue, then I am behind him 100%. His family are hoping

that he will be the next David Beckham and they want

him to focus on that. I'm not going to give up on

Kaden and Richard, though. A month after we last met,

I am back at the school. The thing is, I think football

may be of slightly more Eventually, I manage

to prise them away. Do you remember when we did

that ballet class? Well, I have come back with a bit

of a treat for you guys, just to make things a bit better

when you are practising. They are ballet shoes,

so now, when you practise, you can have something

to practise with. I truly believe that

with a bit of encouragement, ballet can make a real difference

to the lives of the kids at this school, so I'm going to keep

checking in from time to time. Our aim in this school

is to have our children want to come to school, they are excited

about coming to school and this little project here has had that

response because when you do anything creative with these

children, we are going There are now more than four million

drivers out there But some people reckon that just

as very young drivers can be a liability, so can the elderly

when they start to lose their edge. So is it now time to introduce

mandatory medical check-ups, We sent former Top Gear presenter

and veteran petrolhead He's coming at speed, mate,

he's coming at speed. There is a reason older

drivers have a bad rep. He's going to hit!

He's going to hit! A 77-year-old motorist with dementia

was driving on the motorway The only way traffic

cops could stop him And there was another

lucky escape when an 88-year-old driver ploughed

into this hairdresser's. Isolated cases, of course,

but something to ignore? I don't know, they can be quite

stupid sometimes. they shouldn't be driving,

should they? Once they have retired,

then there should be When you get to, like,

70 or whatever, you might, Do we really get less sharp behind

the wheel as we get older? Even if you are a former Top Gear

presenter like me? Actually, if I was on the road,

would I react in that way? I suspect my driving skills are not

quite what they were back then. And yet, the Government

seems happy for us veteran roadsters

to drive on and on. All we have to do is sign

a declaration every three years Or should millions of drivers who,

like me, are now more than 70, be forced to

retake our driving test? After all, that's exactly

what happens abroad. In parts of the good

old US of A, and in far-away New Zealand,

some older drivers have to take Whilst in Europe, many

countries including Italy, Portugal and the Netherlands,

insist older drivers That wouldn't go down well

with many pensioners, Most of my friends are 70-plus and

they seem quite a safe lot. I don't know of anyone

who shouldn't be driving. We are bit slower because we are not

in a hurry to go anywhere! What difference do you think it

would make to your life if, for whatever reason,

you lost your licence or I think I would just go

into a deep depression, If I have to give up driving,

then I have to. To find out if our driving

skills really deteriorate with age, I've come

to the Transport Research Laboratory at Wokingham, where they've

got a state-of-the-art And to help me, I've brought along

two other drivers. We each spend 15 minutes

in the simulator. Our ability to keep a safe distance

from the car in front, Our back-seat driver

is Dr Shaun Helman, Ah. But it's not all bad.

is take a reasonable Angela is doing really well

on some of these tasks. But how do I compare

to young Daniel? He actually seems to

be rather impatient. At the moment, he's done ten heavy

braking events so far in the drive, I wonder if his mum

Michelle is any better. She's only had to apply the brakes

really heavily once or twice. There's only one thing

we did expect to see, which was borne out by the data,

which was that you, as the older driver, would be

the slowest to react. We can see that you responded

on average within about a second and a half

to those sudden events. Whereas Daniel and Michelle

were responding in Yeah, but half a second

is quite a long time in terms of, if you're

travelling at 70 mph, well, in the 1.5 seconds

that it took you to respond, you've

travelled 100 metres. Whereas the other two

would have travelled? So, as the older driver,

I had the slowest reactions. But Shaun reveals I wasn't

the worst driver. He was the most erratic in terms

of increases in speed I think there were 19

occasions in the drive when Daniel had

to brake quite heavily, because maybe he hadn't expected

the car in front to slow down And interestingly you, Angela,

were in the middle with about 11. Middle-aged Michelle, then,

was the safest driver, with quick reactions

and lots of experience. Well, in the real world, older

drivers fare even better. Last year, for every

10,000 young drivers, For middle-aged drivers,

that number was just 16. But for drivers over 70,

it was just 12, making us proportionally the safest

drivers of all. So, even though they don't react as

quickly, they are still safer. They are managing the risk

appropriately by driving In other words, we older

drivers learn to adapt our Some even choose not to drive

at night or in cities. It is a form of self-regulation

and it explains why we have But older drivers do

have an Achilles heel. In fact, research

reveals 28% of accidents For drivers under 70,

it is just 18%. So, if we turn left

at the crossroads... It seems we just don't

pay enough attention. Oh, sorry, you wanted me

to go left, didn't you? Yeah, but it's all right, we'll go

right, that's no problem. Yes, it seems even

I struggle at times! But there is something older drivers

can do about this problem. They can be assessed

and trained by someone the Royal Society for the Prevention

of Accidents, who today So, whilst we older

drivers do have slower reactions and sometimes

struggle at junctions, we are still statistically

the safest on the road. And with a bit of extra training,

we can get even better. So, I can look forward to putting

many more miles on the clock. Great to see the first ever

presenter of Top Gear And that's it for this

week's Inside Out London. Don't forget, if you missed any

of tonight's programme and want to catch up on iPlayer,

then just head to our website. Thanks very much for watching,

I'll see you again soon. Hello, I'm Riz Lateef

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