False allegations of Benefit fraud

anewman

I was wondering if there was any way to deal with being subjected to false allegations of benefit fraud?

My mum recently had a major operation and has been told not to walk around or stand for long for a few months, so my sister has been around more often - although not stayed overnight. Some busy body neighbour has told, presumably the benefit fraud website, that she is living there. I have an extremely good idea who it is :mad: My sister has just bought a new house and sold her old one, so is obviously not living there. So the people complaining are obviously doing so just to cause hassle and aggravation.

Yet the DWP seem to have taken this seriously and sent out a letter and nice long form assuming this is correct. The form asks how long she has been living there and all the things she has been doing since school etc. This seems like presumed guilt and I think it is disgusting that anyone can make an anonymous complaint and cause so much hassle.

WhiteHorse

They are obliged to investigate allegations of fraud. Unfortunately, they don't do as much as they should (they are very selective), and when they do, they often get it hopelessly wrong.

I assume that 'she' refers to the sister. Is the sister living in her new house? Your explanation is not entirely clear. If she is, simply tell them where she lives, that she does not stay overnight at your mothers, and that the allegation is rejected.

Don't tell them anything else - they are not entitled to it. If they get nasty, make a complaint of harrassment and invite them to substantiate their allegation in court.

Never speak to them over the telephone or face-to-face. Get everything in writing.

rogerblack

anewman wrote: »

I think it is disgusting that anyone can make an anonymous complaint and cause so much hassle.

Generally, this sort of attitude never helps, no matter what your 'rights'.

Yes, you may be completely in the right, and the DWP completely in the wrong, but at the end of the day, you've got to convince the decision maker that you are in the right. Even if he happens to be not very awake, and has his rubber 'no' stamp primed.

In principle, you can send back snotty notes, and the absolute minimum you can legally get away with, but if for whatever reason this doesn't convince them that the initial allegation is false, the benefit will be stopped, overpayment proceedings may kick into gear, and you need to go through a deeply annoying appeals process to get you back into the state you were in before.

I'd recommend filling out the form - if it's at all possible to say 'no, person does not live here'.

Send a covering letter with it explaining the full facts. Send this recorded delivery at least, and make sure it's within any time limits. Ideally send it a week before any limits, so that it has time to percolate through their mail system, and hit them before the limit.

Photocopy, or make a copy of all correspondance, along with dates, and keep postage reciepts and proof of deliveries.

Do not go into other matters - such as health, time you've been on the benefit, or anything else. Simply answer the question you've been asked, to reduce the possibility of any confusion.

anewman

rogerblack wrote: »

Generally, this sort of attitude never helps, no matter what your 'rights'.

No my point is that there is now a long form to fill in because some busy body wanted to cause trouble. I know not filling in the form will cause more trouble than it's worth - it is the fact a form needs to be filled in and an investigation complied with at all that is the problem. I understand they have to investigate allegations, but it is the malicious nature of the complainant that has me concerned. I live over 200 miles away and am now concerned that should I go and stay a couple of nights to visit, that some busy body who has nothing better to do is going to say I now live there - when it's none of their business, and then I will have a nice long form to fill out. I'd probably stay at my sisters instead and still have them complain, it would seem.

Presumably the person who made the allegation believed the DWP crack squad of detectives (as seen on TV :rotfl:) would come, see that my sister happens to be there during the day, and stop my mother's benefits.

To answer other question, mother lives in council house, sister just bought a house and lives there staying there overnight. In fact they took a bed from my mum's house recently to take to the new house so it could be used to sleep in, and my sister has not lived there in many years.

I wish I could make a spurious complaint about the people who I believe it to be, and make them have to fill in forms that they should otherwise not need to - but I think the only benefit they'll be claiming is child benefit/wftc.

melbi_uk

anewman wrote: »

No my point is that there is now a long form to fill in because some busy body wanted to cause trouble. I know not filling in the form will cause more trouble than it's worth - it is the fact a form needs to be filled in and an investigation complied with at all that is the problem. I understand they have to investigate allegations, but it is the malicious nature of the complainant that has me concerned. I live over 200 miles away and am now concerned that should I go and stay a couple of nights to visit, that some busy body who has nothing better to do is going to say I now live there - when it's none of their business, and then I will have a nice long form to fill out. I'd probably stay at my sisters instead and still have them complain, it would seem.

Presumably the person who made the allegation believed the DWP crack squad of detectives (as seen on TV :rotfl:) would come, see that my sister happens to be there during the day, and stop my mother's benefits.

To answer other question, mother lives in council house, sister just bought a house and lives there staying there overnight. In fact they took a bed from my mum's house recently to take to the new house so it could be used to sleep in, and my sister has not lived there in many years.

I wish I could make a spurious complaint about the people who I believe it to be, and make them have to fill in forms that they should otherwise not need to - but I think the only benefit they'll be claiming is child benefit/wftc.

Easy peasy......report them for benefit fraud. :beer:

melbi_uk

How do these people know what benefits your mum claims?

anewman

melbi_uk wrote: »

How do these people know what benefits your mum claims?

Well I guess it's obvious through that she does not work, is on her own, and lives in a council house that she claims benefits. She had mental healths issues and has since convinced herself she can't work - I think she could and it would do her a world of good, even if she has difficulty getting a job offer, but there we go on that point anyway. Either way I suspect it's just someone with nothing better to do who complains whether someone is on benefits or not.

A similar thing happened about 6 or so years ago, when she was seeing a chap at the time. Someone complained saying she had a man living with her, but I think the response at that time was someone coming to visit and asking about it rather than going gung ho with a long form asking all possible details - and they said it was a woman who had complained. They were happy that he had his own residence and did not stay overnight. It will no doubt be the same person complaining now.

dogfish12

I've never understood why the poor attack the poor. The neo-liberal capitalist ruling heirachy exploiting the poor I can deal with. Weren't the dwp offering some kind of a cash payment for grasses?Not that there is anything to report. Don't lower yourself by reporting others. I never would, and I mean never.

melbi_uk

dogfish12 wrote: »

I've never understood why the poor attack the poor. The neo-liberal capitalist ruling heirachy exploiting the poor I can deal with. Weren't the dwp offering some kind of a cash payment for grasses?Not that there is anything to report. Don't lower yourself by reporting others. I never would, and I mean never.

Finally a job I can do from home :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Sorry, I know the OP's mothers dilemma isn't a laughing matter.

OP just complete the form, send it off and watch the person who reported her get all upset and disgruntled when their pathetic injustice backfires.

By the way, can't the DWP fine malicious false allegations, would seem a good deterrent to stop such malicious people.

Good luck OP with this mess.

dseventy

Whilst I am sympathetic to the problems a malicious claim causes, we should not be putting off people shopping in cheats.

To report someone you only to suspect them.

Unfortunatly when you are replying on someone else to pay your rent and modest income, you have to jump through their hoops!

D70

livermum

I know that it's a bit of a pain but at the end of the day they are only asking your mother to complete a form. Fill it out, send it back and just get on with it. It may be this neighbour who has maliciously reported her but then it might not, I would certainly not go around making fake reports about the neighbour as surely that would just take up the time of the investigators when they could be looking into genuine fraud cases.