Do DWP randomly request info (!!!!!! & CTC)?

andrew71

We received a letter last week from DWP requesting we send them all details of income for April 2014 to April 2015. P60's proof of benefits etc bank statements etc. The letter says they request information randomly. We have nothing to hide, no extra money going in. Is this really a random request. I do sometimes get paranoid

NotSuchASmugMarriedNow

It's not possible to tell unfortunately. Sometimes they do random checks and sometimes they check up on people who have been reported to them. However, if you have been reported they won't say so - so you've got no means of knowing.


I have to ask- Why does it matter whether its random or whether you've been reported? You still have to give them all the information they ask for

Housing_Benefit_Officer

andrew71 wrote: »

We received a letter last week from DWP requesting we send them all details of income for April 2014 to April 2015. P60's proof of benefits etc bank statements etc. The letter says they request information randomly. We have nothing to hide, no extra money going in. Is this really a random request. I do sometimes get paranoid

Yes - they are always randomly selecting claims to test accuracy etc.

bloolagoon

I note from your signature you are entering competitions. I don't know how this is handled but someone could have reported you if you sell the prizes

andrew71

bloolagoon wrote: »

I note from your signature you are entering competitions. I don't know how this is handled but someone could have reported you if you sell the prizes

I wish it was a prize a month. Only won one prize in last six months and that was two £7 tickets to a craft show. Previous prizes I've won have been kept or giving away as gifts,

justaquestion

By any chance are you on any means tested benefits?

We had a random check once but that was HMRC for CTC

andrew71

justaquestion wrote: »

By any chance are you on any means tested benefits?

We had a random check once but that was HMRC for CTC

Apologies it is HMRC not DWP. Yes we are on means tested benefits. Plus I'm on DLA which up to now aren't means tested,

BlueEyedGirl

I've had random checks from Housing Benefits who have turned up to see I live alone, and asked me to provide proof of ID and bank statements etc. Nothing to be worried about if you have nothing to hide!

justaquestion

I know that HMRC send out tax credit claim forms every year to get a persons income etc, but surely they know anyways what a person's income is, or for that matter what they earn in interest on savings?


Maybe to get all other income like rental property or something like that.

MacMickster

blondebubbles wrote: »

They get employment income details yes but that doesn't always match what the claimant has told them. They then need to check who provided the incorrect information, the claimant or the employer. The easiest way to do that is to ask for the P60.

Or there may be another reason for the discrepancy eg pension deductions, maternity pay, losses from other sources.

As for any other income sources, although other areas of HMRC have access to this, tax credits generally do not.

Pretty poor asking people to supply information that they, as a department, already hold.

Surely if they have a specific query they should come out and ask. At the very least they should only ask for information already available to them.

MacMickster

blondebubbles wrote: »

As I said, the information they hold may not be correct. Employers get things wrong. RTI is still relatively new and can also be wrong. Hence why they'd need to ask.

Anyway, that may not be the reason they are checking this claim. It could be a number of reasons. Or it could purely be a random check.

As long as people continue to lie on their claims, checks must be done.

OP - not saying you are claiming fraudulently in anyway, simply saying why checks must be done.

If there is a discrepancy between information held then why not state this at the outset? Should it be a secret?

A random check shouldn't require information to be provided if it can be verified internally without approaching the claimant.