Mistake with housing/council benefit

Tyfelt

My wife and I currently claim housing and council benefit. I work part-time and my wife was looking for work at the time of our claim. Since then my wife has found part-time work. I phoned the council today to notify them of my wife's new job but realised I was 10 days late in contacting them (they require written contact within 21 days). They said they would suspend the claim and send me a form in the post to send back and then we could revise any overpayments if they were applicable. If we have overpaid we of course would pay back straight away overpayments. Reading through the literature from the council it does state that failure to declare a change in circumstance can result in a 5k fine and/or 3 month prison sentence. Am I automatically going to be prosecuted because I was late in declaring this change of circumstance? I don't have 5k and I will lose my job if I have to go prison. I assume they are prosecuting those who are purposefully scamming the system and not people like myself, but I've learned that assuming anything is probably more stupid than asking a potentially stupid question.

pmlindyloo

I think the literature means that failure to report a change of circumstances at all may result in the fine/prison sentence. Never known anyone fined for being late for informing them.

tomtontom

Because you are over the specified time you may get a £50 administrative fine. The likelihood of this varies between authorities. You certainly won't be going to prison

FRESTER

My council allows one calendar month to report a change.
We have been a few days over this in the past.It is nothing to worry about at all. :beer:

Mr_Lawnmower

As the others have said, you have little if anything to fear from your slightly delayed report of change of circumstances. Prosecution would normally be a possibility only if you deliberately withheld information to claim benefit you were not entitled to, and your dishonestly was discovered. It would not be in the public interest to prosecute those who are merely a little tardy in volunteering the information.

Morglin

Tyfelt wrote: »

My wife and I currently claim housing and council benefit. I work part-time and my wife was looking for work at the time of our claim. Since then my wife has found part-time work. I phoned the council today to notify them of my wife's new job but realised I was 10 days late in contacting them (they require written contact within 21 days). They said they would suspend the claim and send me a form in the post to send back and then we could revise any overpayments if they were applicable. If we have overpaid we of course would pay back straight away overpayments. Reading through the literature from the council it does state that failure to declare a change in circumstance can result in a 5k fine and/or 3 month prison sentence. Am I automatically going to be prosecuted because I was late in declaring this change of circumstance? I don't have 5k and I will lose my job if I have to go prison. I assume they are prosecuting those who are purposefully scamming the system and not people like myself, but I've learned that assuming anything is probably more stupid than asking a potentially stupid question.

As they usually take so long to process any change of circumstances anyway, you certainly have nothing to worry about.

The only people they try to prosecute are those they consider guilty of fraud.

Lin