More than a quarter of people in some local communities don't have a passport, raising questions about their ability to pass Right to Rent checks.

Research by digital identity firm, ID Crypt Global, reveals that 14% of those in England and Wales don't have a passport, with people in Wales - 18.8% of the population '� followed by 18.3% in the North East, the East Midlands and West Midlands (16.2%) least likely to hold one. In East Lindsey, Lincolnshire, 25% of local people aren't passport holders.

This presents challenges for landlords who use passports as the main document for carrying out Right to Rent checks, while fraudulent documents can present an additional risk, ID Crypt Global CEO, Lauren Wilson-Smith (pictured) tells LandlordZONE.

She adds that because we don't have a formal, obligatory ID card scheme in the UK, passports are a vital piece of documentation - and in the absence of a driving licence, they become essential. She says: 'Given its importance, it's quite staggering that as many as eight million people are currently living without a passport across the UK.'�

Dangers or doubts

Wilson-Smith explains that a digital identity '� an electronic version of a physical ID document - can remove any potential dangers or doubts in this respect, enabling a quick and certain way to ascertain a tenant's right to rent within the UK.

'This can then be made easily available across the board, whether it be to an agent, the home office or a verification platform, to further streamline the process.'�

Read: Ultimate guide to Right to Rent checks.