customer compliance

jools61

Got a letter from Job Centre Plus, asking me to attend a Customer Compliance interview. It says to bring bank statements for all savings from April 2008. However I didn't start to receive Income Support until 2009. I rang them and queried why they wanted statements for the last three and a half years. I was told quite bluntly "We can ask to see your bank statements for any dates we wish".

The problem is that I havn't kept any statements; recently I moved house and everything beyond the last 3 months got shredded. When I asked the bank about statements, I was told I would have to pay a fee of £10 for the earlier statements. They only issue recent statements for free. Surely if I'm receiving benefits, I shouldn't be expected to pay £10 of my benefit just so that officials can see my statements?

So I only have three recent statements. Can Customer Compliance still demand to see my bank statements as far back as Apr 2008, if I have to pay for them? The only benefits I received then were DLA and Incapacity Benefit. They're likely to ask questions about any monies paid in over the last three and a half years, but I havn't kept any records. I'm worried sick because I suffer from memory problems and know I won't be able to answer the questions without the records.

Guccigirl

You will need to supply the bank statements; however ask Jobcentre Plus to refund you the cost of the statements as it isn't reasonable for anyone to keep statements that far back and they are insisting on seeing them for that period. They could/should have asked for statements at the time you applied for Income Support to explore your income/savings.

If you say no it will look suspicious; they do have the right to ask so if you have nothing to hide you should comply. Income support have asked the compliance team to investigate your accounts. They want to look at dates prior to the Income support as you could have had a considerable amount in your account and disposed of it prior to getting the Income Support to enable you to become entitled to it. hth

Richie-from-the-Boro

jools61 wrote: »

Got a letter from Job Centre Plus, asking me to attend a Customer Compliance interview. It says to bring bank statements for all savings from April 2008. However I didn't start to receive Income Support until 2009. I rang them and queried why they wanted statements for the last three and a half years. I was told quite bluntly "We can ask to see your bank statements for any dates we wish".

The problem is that I havn't kept any statements; recently I moved house and everything beyond the last 3 months got shredded. When I asked the bank about statements, I was told I would have to pay a fee of £10 for the earlier statements. They only issue recent statements for free. Surely if I'm receiving benefits, I shouldn't be expected to pay £10 of my benefit just so that officials can see my statements?

So I only have three recent statements. Can Customer Compliance still demand to see my bank statements as far back as Apr 2008, if I have to pay for them? The only benefits I received then were DLA and Incapacity Benefit. They're likely to ask questions about any monies paid in over the last three and a half years, but I havn't kept any records. I'm worried sick because I suffer from memory problems and know I won't be able to answer the questions without the records.

CO's deal with low level fraud referrals, not necessarily at this point worthy of a full scale investigation. So someone has chosen you deliberately or at random for an interview, or someone has reported you malicious or otherwise. Look at it as an opportunity to correct something wrong on your claim without at this point the fear of prosecution.

In your shoes I'd give them all the detail they require of you, three and a half years ago is a long time, look at your claims then and correct anything that they may have recorded wrongly. One thing for sure my friend not doing what they want you to do will result in an immediate stop being put on all monies paid to you.

Pay the T£nn£r - get a receipt for the t£nn£r - give them the evidence they want - and ask for the money to be reimbursed - it might be the cheapest money you ever wasted.

jools61

Thanks for replies. Customer Compliance said it's a routine check; they say no malicous allegations have been made. I havn't deliberately disposed of a large sum of money in order to get income Support, but perhaps they think I have. The problem is proving it.

During the time that I lived at home with my mother, my DLA had accumulated in my account. My mother (who is my carer) asked me to save it to replace the car used to transport me around. As I'm unable to drive, £3000 of my saved DLA was transferred to her to purchase the car on my behalf. This was in Oct 2008, well before I became entitled to IS. At the time I had to go into homeless accommodation following a crisis. My mother provided a statement to my housing benefits saying that the money had been transferred for the purchase of the car. The benefits people didn't question it any further, I wasn't getting IS at the time.

My care needs changed over the next nine months. The crisis followed a campaign of harassment which affected my mental health. The deterioration in my health was well documented by health workers at the time and a support worker advised me to claim middle rate DLA for care. I won an appeal and was then awarded DLA at the middle rate for care, which entitled me to IS. I was only awarded IS after nearly having a nervous breakdown, so how could I have foreseen that happening?

I don't know how they could think I've disposed of the money deliberately. If that's the case, will I be ordered to pay back the money used for the car? That was three and a half years ago, the car has long since been sold.

Richie-from-the-Boro

jools61 wrote: »

Thanks for replies. Customer Compliance said it's a routine check; they say no malicious allegations have been made. I haven't deliberately disposed of a large sum of money in order to get income Support, but perhaps they think I have. The problem is proving it.

During the time that I lived at home with my mother, my DLA had accumulated in my account. My mother (who is my carer) asked me to save it to replace the car used to transport me around. As I'm unable to drive, £3000 of my saved DLA was transferred to her to purchase the car on my behalf. This was in Oct 2008, well before I became entitled to IS. At the time I had to go into homeless accommodation following a crisis. My mother provided a statement to my housing benefits saying that the money had been transferred for the purchase of the car. The benefits people didn't question it any further, I wasn't getting IS at the time.

My care needs changed over the next nine months. The crisis followed a campaign of harassment which affected my mental health. The deterioration in my health was well documented by health workers at the time and a support worker advised me to claim middle rate DLA for care. I won an appeal and was then awarded DLA at the middle rate for care, which entitled me to IS. I was only awarded IS after nearly having a nervous breakdown, so how could I have foreseen that happening?

I don't know how they could think I've disposed of the money deliberately. If that's the case, will I be ordered to pay back the money used for the car? That was three and a half years ago, the car has long since been sold.

No one knows whether you """ will be ordered to pay back the money used for the car """ my friend, because until you are interviewed and it becomes clear what it is they ' think ' they have on you, and whether or not they can prove you committed fraud.

DLA is non-means tested but clearly the fact that £3k was allowed to accumulate [ because you did not need / use / it ! ] would be enough to arouse suspicion if someone was looking for anomalies in your past.

Just go to the interview and tell your truth, if you've done nothing wrong I'm sure you will have nothing to worry about, but don't go with a bad attitude, the CO's are there to protect the taxpayers of the country and and make sure that the money goes to the care & mobility needs of those deserving.

Go online and download and print all the bank statements for the period in question, that's 42 sheets to print out [ make sure you do it in black & white only ].