Home Safe Portal and Yoti Verification for Peterborough Landlords

What Home Safe Does

Home Safe (Home-Safe Scheme Ltd) is Peterborough City Council's external delivery partner for property licensing. They run the online application portal, handle identity and document validation, coordinate communications with applicants, and carry out property compliance inspections. Legal authority to grant or refuse licences stays with the Council.

All Peterborough selective and additional HMO licence applications must be submitted through the Home Safe portal — there's no paper form and you can't apply directly through the Council's website.

Setting Up Your Home Safe Account

Start at the Home Safe portal and create an applicant account using your email address. This is straightforward registration — the friction comes at the next stage.

Yoti Identity Verification

Before you can add properties or start an application, Home Safe requires biometric identity verification through Yoti, a government-approved platform. This step catches many landlords off guard, especially those who aren't comfortable with smartphone-based verification.

The process works like this:

1. Facial match — Yoti uses your smartphone or computer camera to perform a live biometric face scan
2. Photo ID upload — you scan or photograph a valid UK driving licence or passport at high resolution
3. Proof of address — upload a utility bill or council tax statement dated within the last 3 months

Yoti matches the face scan against your photo ID to confirm identity. Registration approval typically takes minutes, but can take up to 48 hours in some cases.

If you can't complete the online check, Yoti verification is available at participating Post Office branches. This is a useful fallback for anyone whose smartphone camera isn't cooperating or who prefers in-person verification.

Common Issues at the Yoti Stage

The most frequent problems landlords hit:

• Poor lighting or camera quality — the facial match needs a clear, well-lit image. Older phone cameras sometimes fail the quality threshold
• Expired ID — Yoti won't accept an expired driving licence or passport
• Proof of address too old — the document must be dated within 3 months. A utility bill from 4 months ago gets rejected
• Verification delays — while most approvals are near-instant, some take the full 48 hours. Don't start your formal application until verification is confirmed

After Verification: The 28-Day Clock

Once your identity is verified, you can add property profiles and start formal scheme applications. Home Safe gives you 28 days from starting an application to upload the compliance documents, complete the declarations, and pay the Part A fee. If the application locks after 28 days, contact Home Safe to request that it be unlocked. The application is not duly made until the required documents and fee are submitted.

This means you should have your documents gathered before starting the formal application — not after. Gas safety certificate, EICR, EPC, proof of ownership, and (for HMOs) a floor plan with dimensions and a fire risk assessment all need to be ready to upload.

Who to Contact

Home Safe handles portal support, Yoti issues, document upload queries, and inspection scheduling. Their contact is [email protected].

For questions about HMO rules, enforcement, or housing standards, contact Peterborough City Council's Housing Standards team at [email protected]. For additional licensing scheme queries specifically, use [email protected].

The Peterborough Landlord Licensing Guide includes a step-by-step walkthrough of the entire Home Safe portal workflow — from initial registration through to post-inspection compliance.

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