customer compliance letter about undeclared savings

tinsel_2

I have recently received a letter from Income support asking me to provide information on money they have found out about in my accounts.
The money was left by my father who died 9 years ago who told me to keep it safe for my severely disabled son to be used for any emergencies later on in his life.
My father idolised my son and treated him like a father.
The money has not been spent but I have moved it around over the years into different building society accounts ISA's etc for better interest. Unfortunately due to all the stress of my sons ill health in and out of hospital I am finding it hard to remember the old closed down accounts and I cant find records.
This money of £20,000 has not been spent and is now all in my sons account.
I have signed the form for them so that they can look into the details of the account details they have.
I have been told by a friend that i could be in a lot of trouble about this situation and I am terrified that I will be prosecuted and be taken away from my son who desperately needs me for all his needs ie: feeding , toileting , washing etc..He can not walk .I also have to be awake most nights to check he is still breathing when he has epeletic fits. He has no respite care and depends on me 100%. I look after hin 24hrs a day.
My health is also bad and I am on a lot of medication. My doctor has now also put me on antidepressants
I have never done anything wrong in my life apart from this mistake.
Can anyone advise me what to do or what might happen?

Mrs_B_12

If it was in your name you should have declared it but I don't think you will end up in prison over this. You must tell them as much as you can about the accounts and wait to see if any action is taken. Have you got a local carers association or support group you can turn to for advice? There is some useful info and support online at www.specialkidsintheuk.org

relay

No doubt you would have been made aware that you would not qualify for income support if you had a certain amount in savings, you normally have to declare that when you claim, so at worst you will probably have to pay back all the benefit you claimed while you had that money regardless of who it was intended for in future - if it was still money you were in posession of at the time you claimed the reality is if you had declared it you might not have been entitled to the benefit.

I don't mean to sound unsympathetic but surely you must have foreseen there might be a problem in not being honest about such a large sum of money?

pipkin71

Hi tinsel.

Once a person on IS has savings over £6.000 then benefits are affected. Once that figure reaches £16.000, I believe, then you would not have been entitled to any income support.

As your father gave you the money, and you had it in your accounts, it will be viewed as yours, and as you have to answer a question about savings on your IS application, changing bank accounts several times over the last nine years could be viewed as an attempt to hide these savings in order to continue to claim IS.

I know you must be worried now, but your best bet is to go to the interview and be totally honest with the compliance officer. I don't know what would happen from there, although I would say don't be worrying about prison. You have made a mistake, and this now has to be faced, so I wish you well.

Pipkin xxxx

Thriftylad

Get some advice from CAB or Welfare Rights, things may not be as dire as they seem. If the money was left to you with the express intention of being spent on your son then a (albeit informal) trust has been created. Money that is inaccessible because it is in a trust will not count as savings ie because you are carrying out the wishes of the deceased. It really depends if there is anyone who can verify this. Was there a will/note/letter left or can other members of the family testify that the money was only left to look after your son? Have you spent some of the money on your son? Do you have receipts for the expenditure?

Have you also been claiming Housing or Council Tax benefit too? If you have the Local Authority will also want to know about this money and there could unfortunatley be more problems in the pipeline. The same arguments would apply with them too but just be aware they may be contacting you soon.

tinsel_2

Thank you all for your replies.
Can anyone please tell me if they know am I likely to be prosecuted over this situation? I am prepared to pay back the money and I am in such a state over this right now.
I know I have messed up.
I just want to be able to concentrate on looking after my son who needs me and I need him.

relay

I'm not qualified to say as i don't know enough about these matters, all i would advise is that you cooperate fully & be as honest as you can about the money & the fact you are prepared to pay anything back.

They may well see your claim as fruadulent because you did not declare the money when you made your claim & as such can take action to recover any monies they consider you were not entitled to. Each case will be judged on it's own merits & it may not necessarily result in prosecution but only the Compliance Officer can confirm that.


I think all you can really do is be as honest & truthful as possible and stress to them the reason why you did not declare it is because you considered the money not to be your's but your son's savings because it was left for him. Do you have any surviving relatives who can confirm who your father left this money to?

alwaysonthego_2

Tinsel go to your CAB and talk to them. It has been mentioned it is very unlikely that you will be prosecuted if you co-operate. Be honest, but take advise first. Don't make yourself ill over it, your son needs you well.

roddydogs

You honestly didnt know that £20,000 disqualifys you from income support?????

seven-day-weekend

The OP considered the money to be her son's.

cattie

As long as you tell the absolute truth then it is extremely unlikely that you will be prosecuted. At this stage it doesn't sound as if you've been invited for an interview under caution, which is generally what happens when DWP have ascertained that somebody has capital or assets that they haven't declared when claiming benefits.

Your stumbling block might be the fact that you have moved the money around over the years to ensure you were getting the best interest rate. This will show that you kept an active interest in the accounts & were very aware of your financial situation & the amount of capital in your name.

The most likely outcome will be that you have to repay money to the DWP
for the period that the money was in your name & control, but usually they are more than happy to agree to a debt management plan, where you repay an amount each month from your income/benefits that will not leave you in hardship.