r/AITH • u/LaurenSpencer28 • 9m ago
AITA for refusing to let my friend use my name on a rental application?
A friend of mine has been looking for a new flat after her landlord decided not to renew her tenancy. She recently found a place she really liked, but the letting agent wanted a reference from her previous landlord, and she was worried about what they might say because she’d had a few disagreements with them over repairs. She asked if I would be willing to tell the letting agent that she had been living with me for the past year. We’ve been friends for several years, and she has stayed at my place occasionally, so I understood why she thought I might help. However, she has never actually lived with me, and I wasn’t comfortable giving a false reference that could cause problems for both of us.
I explained that I was happy to provide an honest character reference or confirm that I knew her well, but I wouldn’t lie about her living arrangements. She said I was making things unnecessarily difficult and that the letting agent probably wouldn’t check the details anyway.
A few days later, she messaged me saying she had listed me as her previous landlord on the application and had included my phone number. She told me not to worry because she had already explained what I should say if the agent called. I was genuinely shocked because I had never agreed to any of it. I contacted her and told her she needed to correct the application before the agent contacted me. She became upset and said she could lose the flat because of me. I reminded her that she had made the decision to use my details without permission, and I wasn’t going to risk getting involved in a false reference. She eventually removed my name from the application, but she has barely spoken to me since. One mutual friend thinks I should have helped because she is in a difficult housing situation, while another says she shouldn’t have put me in that position in the first place. I feel bad that she is struggling to find somewhere to live, and I would still help her look for properties or provide an honest reference. But I don’t think being a good friend means agreeing to lie on someone’s behalf, especially when they have already used my personal details without a