Does my partner moving back in after split affect my benefits?

fwench

My partner of several years and I split up for a period, during which he moved out of our home. We lived here for four years together, it's rented.

We have two children together. He paid me the maintenence sum recommended by the CSA website while we were apart. I claimed any benefit I was entitled to, under guidance of CAB, as youngest child is only two and I wasn't working. I got housing benefit, council tax reduction, tax credits, etc etc.

Now after a year we have decided we'd like to try again. It's going ok, and he is asking if he's allowed to move back in. I would like him to, but as he gets paid an average salary, £25k, obviously as a household we wouldn't be entitled to benefits. This is as it should be, but I've been warned that if he just moves back into our house it may look suspicious, like he moved out on purpose so I could claim benefits. I'm scared that if I let him move in with us again and just end all mt benefit claims I could be accused of benefit fraud?

While apart neither of us lived with anyone else as part of a couple, he came to see the children regularly, stayed over a handful of nights - xmas, when i'd been in hospital once, once when i was ill.

I would like us to be a family again, but now somebody has mentioned it I'm very afraid of being accused of taking advantage of the system. The only money my partner ever paid me was the amount the csa said he should. We never went to court over the children or money etc, it was very friendly, we wanted to get on for the children. Until a few weeks ago it never occured to me that we'd be 'trying again'. As it's me that's claimed as a single mother, i'd be the one supposedly committing the 'fraud'.

Where do I stand on this legally? May sound odd but I'd never claimed anything like that before and it took ages to sort out and i don't really know the rules. Can my partner move back in if i just end all my claims? Or do i have to pay it all back now?

pandaspot

There is no problem doing this. Loads of people spilit up and decide to try again. I work as a hb ctb assessor and we never question it. The suspicious claims are the people who continue having children together but claim to be apart.

dmg24

As he would have been keeping a separate address whilst you were apart it would be easy to prove that you were separated, should the question be asked.

fwench

He went back to live with his elderly father. he paid him 'housekeeping' to cover the general bills increase, but this was probably in cash. the old man lost some sort of council tax reduction due to my partner being there, so he paid him the difference to cover this as well. All partners post went down there though, credit card bills, mobile, insurance etc. He changed his registered address for work and his car - something to do with work and insurance. So there's paperwork like that. But at the same time a couple of things of his kept coming here, and he never changed his doctors address.

I'm really worried I was too lax on this. He was living away around 14 months.

It was another single mum who mentioned there might be a problem with him moving in with me again - I assumed she must have some sort of experience with this. There's no way I could pay back over a years worth of rent and tax credits - it must be over £10,000 by now. Really paranoid now

DX2

I think you are worrying over nothing at all TBH. Enjoy you family life together again.

pandaspot

You have Nothing to worry about honest, she was probably jealous lol

fwench

pandaspot wrote: »

You have Nothing to worry about honest, she was probably jealous lol

What if she takes that one step further and reports me. How could I prove my innocence? I had the sort of job that required total disclosure on frauds, bankrupcies etc, i'd like to go back to it one day, I couldn't risk my record being jeopardised like that. Is she really winding me up over nothing?

Supernatural

I'd stop asking for her opinion on matters that don't concern her, if she reports you she'll look a fool and really isn't any kind of friend, she sounds jealous. As the others have said if he can prove he was living elsewhere you should have nothing to worry about.