interview with benefits fraud dept

Murtle

Good luck, and don't panic. It will be a standard letter with all the jargon they "need" to put in it.

Well done for looking after and raising your three children.

Wish you all the best

x

deb0020

"since my young one is now attending afternoon session he will have to come with me to the interview because its in the morning"

Why not give them a ring and ask to rearrange the interview at a more suitable time for yourself and at the same time ask what it is about? You never know they they may give you some info.

elona

Rather than ask to rearrange the interview ( they will think you have a job) write saying that you are looking after your 3 children and that one of them will have to come with you as you are the sole carer.

That way it is on record and they will probably contact you to change the appointment or visit you at home.

If they think that it is their idea, rather than yours then that should help.

wazza

thanks for the replies

went to see a welfare benefit officer today. She rang the fraud office and found out that they have information from inland revenue about some capital i havent declared.

i have four bank accounts. Two are used for paying bills. One is for savings and the other is a joint account. In total they add up to less than £2000.

I have only put details of my savings accounts when i filled the IS forms last september. From this account i transfer to other two accounts so there are funds to pay for bills via direct debit.

Have considered transfering all direct debits to one account and close them down but never got around to it.

At least it narrows it down regarding the enquiry.

The benefit officier told me rarely do solicitors attend these interviews for free. So i am going to see what she can do for me.

If they ask me to sign any forms do i have to? Someone recommended to cooperate with them so things can go smoothly but signing a form giving them rights to access my bank details is that acceptable?

jobbingmusician

If your total savings are, and always have been, only £2000 then STOP WORRYING....you will not be the only person, by a long way, to have forgotten/omitted to put down all your accounts. You can understand why they have to check, but I wouldn't worry.

I would be inclined to be as co-operative as possible - I bet they are allowed to look at your bank accounts anyway, knowing what a dictatorship we live in. The less you try to hide - or rather, the more open you are with them, the more they will believe that they are wasting their time!

iwanttosave_2

At the end of the day if you have done no wrong, you have absolutly nothing to worry about, it's proberbly just some !!!! up, it normally is ( when i was on lone parent they kept stopping it because apparently i was working, it turned out that it was some one with the same name as me) It will all come right in the end

Fran

wazza wrote:

If they ask me to sign any forms do i have to? Someone recommended to cooperate with them so things can go smoothly but signing a form giving them rights to access my bank details is that acceptable?

The trouble is that you haven't declared the accounts (whether or not there's any money in them - you're meant to tell them if you do unpaid voluntary work), they might question the joint account too in terms of your relationship with the other account holder (I'm only guessing here). I didnt know that you had to sign to give them access to accounts. It would be easier for you if you take a statement of how much is in the account along to the interview if that's the case. If you refuse they might suspend your benefit as your refusal to declare the amount in the accounts could be construed as hiding something (ie money) from them. At least you now know what it's about so you're prepared.

MyUserNamesTaken

As far as I know, you've nothing to worry about. The amount in the accounts is less than the £3k savings limit, which means that you still would have been entitled to IS even if you had declared them. As long as it would have made no difference to your entitlement, you'll be fine. You've not benefitted financially as a result of not declaring them, so no fraud committed.


The joint account could be a problem, though, as that shows a financial tie with someone else. Who's the joint account with?

wazza

the joint account is with the ex. it only has funds put in before the due date. new cards were issued and i kept hers. i only have less than 150 pounds in it

Fran

You should get the account frozen (as you won't be able to close it without her signature) - after taking out the cash of course!