Students are increasingly falling victim to scammers who are exploiting the shortage of accommodation to dupe them into paying for non-existent rooms.

The national students’ union LVSb recorded a 9.3% increase in calls to its housing hotline last year, receiving 236 reports. International students were especially prone to falling for scams because they are unfamiliar with the system, the LSVb said.

One student lost €1,600 to fraudsters after being offered a room to rent in The Hague, while another said he had been contacted by “countless” fake landlords who tried to persuade him to pay for a room without viewing it first.

The union said the scams had all the hallmarks of organised crime, with fraudsters placing fake ads on social media to snare students trying to find rooms in a market where demand is far greater than supply.

“We are extremely shocked by the stories we have received from students recently,” said chairman Abdelkader Karbache. “We hope politicians are just as shocked and come up with solutions.

“It’s not just as simple as students having their money stolen, but we also often see that when they report the incident the situation is hopeless and they don’t get help.”

The union is urging universities and colleges to improve access to their rental teams and inform students about potential fraud, while municipalities with large student populations should set up independent rental teams to tackle the issue.

Students with complaints or queries about their accommodation can contact the LSVb’s Housing Hotline at www.lsvb.nl/housinghotline.