L&Q Group

L&Q Group, housing association and residential developer in England

L&Q Group presents itself as a housing association and residential developer. Its activity is aimed at residents of rented housing and buyers of new-build homes, with a stated presence in two major areas of England: the south east and the north west. The organisation handles housing and tenancy enquiries, manages rent collection and channels repair reports through its customer service teams.

Resident support and case management

The site indicated that residents can contact by phone or email to report a repair, pay their rent or speak to the team about anything else regarding their home or tenancy. Support is organised by region: residents in the south east of England have their own phone number and email, and those in the north west of England have different ones. In the north west, moreover, some online services were still available via MyAccount.

Energy services for L&Q Energy customers

L&Q Energy customers could still make payments online or over the phone. The website distinguished two routes depending on the start of the account number: accounts starting with 98260189 and those starting with 98260228, each with its own customer service phone number.

Home buying and selling and employment

The page directed those looking for work or with an application in progress to a jobs portal, and to an L&Q Homes section where the latest resale properties listed could be viewed.

Cyber security incident and notice to residents

The content analysed corresponded to a notice about a cyber security incident affecting L&Q's website and online services for residents, which remained unavailable. The organisation stated that it had contacted directly affected residents by email and that, according to its investigation, financial data such as bank account numbers had not been compromised, nor had the wider databases containing residents' personal and operational information.

The notice described unauthorised access to emails or webform messages sent by a large number of residents. Given the increased risk of fraud and phishing by email, L&Q set up a specific address for enquiries about suspicious communications and reminded that fraudulent communications can be reported to Report Fraud, the police service, online or by phone.

Recommendations against fraud

The organisation warned that it never asks for bank details to confirm a resident's identity and urged extreme caution with messages impersonating its identity or that of its partners. Among the warning signs it cited spelling mistakes, unusual formatting or strange greetings. It recommended not clicking on links or opening attachments from unknown or untrusted senders, and not providing personal information without being certain who is asking for it.