Benefit fraud

curty510

Lanzarote1938 wrote: »

The money should be repaid at the same rate as it was stolen. Go to court and send in the bailiffs if necessary to reclaim taxpayers' money.

in principal i agree, but if you are leaving the OP with no money to live off by taking too much of the OP's wages will result in the OP leaving their job, claiming benefits and nothing will be paid.

I cannot abide benefit fraud, i see it as stealing from my taxes that i have paid, but the OP has made a mistake/committed fraud. Punishment and repayment should be a absolute must, but the OP still has to live and be able to work to pay it back.

sangie595

If the OP has been on benefits and is now in a low paid jobs, bailiffs aren't going to find anything worth what is owed. It will just be another expense that taxpayers end up with the bill for. Personally, I think the best option for benefit fraud is to refuse further benefit until an equal amount had been "repaid" so that they cannot fall back onto benefits again. Then they either find a job or a minimum wage job such as street sweeping is provided for them, from which the repayments are claimed. That would be a far more productive outcome, and a real disincentive to cheating benefits. And there are plenty of minimum wage jobs cleaning the environment that are not being done, so could not displace existing workers. It's too easy for people to get away with such frauds by being on benefits still, and whilst I absolutely support having benefits (and would even support better benefits) as a protection for the vulnerable in society who are out of work through no fault of their own, I do think that fraud should break the suicidal contract we have as a society to protect them from the consequences of their own actions.

Lanzarote1938

sangie595 wrote: »

Personally, I think the best option for benefit fraud is to refuse further benefit until an equal amount had been "repaid" so that they cannot fall back onto benefits again. It's too easy for people to get away with such frauds by being on benefits still, and whilst I absolutely support having benefits (and would even support better benefits) as a protection for the vulnerable in society who are out of work through no fault of their own, I do think that fraud should break the suicidal contract we have as a society to protect them from the consequences of their own actions.

Brilliant idea for those found to have KNOWINGLY committed benefit fraud.

tomtom256

Lanzarote1938 wrote: »

Brilliant idea for those found to have KNOWINGLY committed benefit fraud.

Yes because everyone knows there is no reason to declare any change's in you circumstances when claiming benefits.

It's on pretty much every letter you get.

Oops I forgot!!

sangie595

Lanzarote1938 wrote: »

Brilliant idea for those found to have KNOWINGLY committed benefit fraud.

Fraud requires intent. Therefore the knowingly bit is not required. But, as tomtom points out, ignorance should not be a valid defence. Not knowing that murder is an offence doesn't get you acquitted. There are things that are made clear up front and that people know. I'm claiming a benefit because I have no work, so I'm going to go to work and claim that benefit as well is an obvious one. Even if there weren't plenty of warnings not to do that!

Mersey_2

That is now the case. Those convicted of a benefit fraud offence are usually barred from receiving any benefit £ for between 6 months and 2 years.

NYM

Mersey wrote: »

That is now the case. Those convicted of a benefit fraud offence are usually barred from receiving any benefit £ for between 6 months and 2 years.

Seriously? Nothing at all?

curty510

Mersey wrote: »

That is now the case. Those convicted of a benefit fraud offence are usually barred from receiving any benefit £ for between 6 months and 2 years.

about time :T hopefully that would also act as a strong deterrent to commit.

ceecee1

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/loss-of-benefit-as-a-penalty-for-benefit-fraud

Loss of benefit provisions

teddysmum

Mersey wrote: »

That is now the case. Those convicted of a benefit fraud offence are usually barred from receiving any benefit £ for between 6 months and 2 years.

But any they pay back, unless they have huge (previously hidden ) resources is usually a trivial amount that will take more than their lifespan to pay back. As people in the media have said, if only we could all get loans at that miniscule rate.