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A benefit fraud investigation can feel daunting and challenging. To put your mind at ease, we explore the five key steps during the benefit fraud investigation process. We also cover six of the most frequently asked questions about a benefit fraud investigation and how a fraud barrister can help.
Benefit fraud occurs when you claim benefits (often in the form of financial, medical or food assistance) to which you are not entitled. The most common form of benefit fraud is when a person receives unemployment benefits when they are working. It’s estimated that in Great Britain almost £2.8 million has been lost to benefit fraud, almost double the 2010 figure of £1.1 million. And, £8.6 billion was overpaid by the Government during 2021.
Examples of benefit fraud include:
If this comes to the attention of the office distributing the benefit, you’ll likely be investigated for benefit fraud.
The benefit fraud investigation process typically follows these five key steps:
If you are being investigated for benefit fraud, you may be contacted by the office responsible for the benefit in question. This contact is likely to come from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), your local authority, or someone from the Service and Personnel Veterans Agency. The method of communication will depend on the office who is contacting you and which of your details are available to them. The office may contact you via different means, depending on if you respond and the severity of the benefit fraud investigation.
While you are being investigated for benefit fraud, you may receive a letter informing you that your benefits may be temporarily suspended.
The third step in the benefit fraud investigation process is being interviewed under caution. The office which provides your benefit needs to collect as much information and evidence as possible. As a result, you could be visited by a Fraud Investigation Officer (FIO) or be invited to an investigatory interview, i.e. an ‘interview under caution’.
This interview is formal and may be recorded to collect evidence in a criminal investigation against you. Hence, you should either exercise your legal right to remain silent or answer any questions honestly and to the best of your ability. The information gathered will be used to determine the office’s next steps in the benefit fraud investigation. So, it’s important to get advice from a specialist benefit fraud barrister during this step.
Following on from the interview under caution, officers may continue to collect information as part of the benefit fraud investigation process.
The DWP can investigate any benefits they believe are being taken advantage of, for example:
Local authorities, the DWP and HMRC can make investigations to identify and prevent fraud. These authorities are likely to share information about you with one another.
Officers can only make enquiries into benefit fraud where they have reasonable grounds to do so. During the benefit fraud investigation, they can:
The final step in the benefit fraud investigation process is the outcome. If during a benefit fraud investigation you are found not guilty, you should be able to claim back your benefits that were temporarily stopped while you were investigated for fraud.
However, if you are found guilty by FIOs, the consequences can vary depending on how many times you are found guilty of committing benefit fraud. These consequences might include:
Only sanctionable benefits can be stopped or reduced. If you commit benefit fraud on a benefit that isn’t sanctionable, your other benefits may be reduced instead. However, if you receive any of the ‘exception’ benefits, none of your benefits can be stopped or reduced. See below for a list of sanctionable benefits and which benefits cannot be stopped.
Unfortunately, individuals being falsely reported for benefit fraud in the UK is more common than you’d expect. The Guardian reported that, between 2011 and 2016, more than 85% of public tips on benefit ‘frauds’ were false. Most claims were found to be false primarily due to a lack of evidence against the alleged fraudster.
We know that the benefit fraud investigation process can be overwhelming, so we’ve broken down the six most frequently asked questions.
The DWP will commonly contact you once they have been informed that there may be grounds for a formal benefit fraud investigation. You will be contacted by a registered form of contact by your local authority, the DWP or HMRC, for instance, by telephone or formal letter.
Yes, the DWP can look through all of your bank accounts and financial statements. They are looking for proof of benefit fraud; for instance, they might look for payments from an employer if you are claiming unemployment benefits.
When it comes to investigating your financial statements, the DWP can look into as much detail as they wish from the last 12 years.
Yes, the DWP can look over your social media accounts, including Facebook. Whilst checking your social media, the DWP will be looking at your tagged pictures, any location check-ins or any posts that may incriminate you for benefit fraud.
Yes, the DWP may watch your house. Often if your house is being watched, officers will be focusing on who enters and exits the property with the use of undercover surveillance. Hence, the officers may be in normal clothes to be discreet. This situation may arise if your partner now living with you and the household income has increased, but you haven’t reported this change of circumstance.
You can anonymously report anyone you suspect of benefit fraud using the confidential online form or by calling the benefit fraud hotline. What happens next depends on the individual in question. For example, they may have now reported a change in their circumstances. However, once you have reported someone for benefit fraud, you won’t be informed about any of the next steps, nor the outcome.
We hope that you have found this guide useful for understanding the benefit fraud investigation process and that you now know what to expect if you are investigated for benefit fraud.
If you are dealing with a benefit fraud case, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team of experienced benefit fraud barristers who have expertise in a variety of fraud cases.
See below for the full list of sanctionable benefits and benefits that can’t be stopped:
| Sanctionable benefits include: | Benefits that can’t be reduced or stopped if you’re guilty of benefit fraud: | Exception benefits that can’t be stopped: |
|---|---|---|
| Carer’s Allowance | Attendance Allowance | Maternity Allowance |
| Employment and Support Allowance | Bereavement Payment | Statutory Adoption Pay |
| Housing Benefit | Bereavement Support Payment | Statutory Maternity Pay |
| Incapacity Benefit | Child Benefit | Statutory Paternity Pay |
| Income Support | Child Tax Credit | Statutory Sick Pay |
| Industrial Death Benefit | Christmas Bonus | |
| Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit | Disability Living Allowance | |
| Industrial Injuries Reduced Earnings Allowance | Graduated Retirement Benefit | |
| Industrial Injuries Retirement Allowance | Guardian’s Allowance | |
| Industrial Injuries Unemployability Supplement | Industrial Injuries Constant Attendance Allowance (where a Disablement Pension is payable) | |
| Jobseeker’s Allowance | Industrial Injuries Exceptionally Severe Disablement Allowance (where a Disablement Pension is payable) | |
| Severe Disablement Allowance | Personal Independence Payment | |
| Pension Credit | State Pension | |
| Universal Credit | Social Fund Payments | |
| War Disablement Pension | War Pension Constant Attendance Allowance | |
| War Widow’s Pension | War Pension Exceptionally Severe Disablement Allowance | |
| War Pension Unemployability Supplement | War Pension Mobility Supplement | |
| War Pension Allowance for Lower Standard of Occupation | ||
| Widowed Mother’ s/Parent’s Allowance | ||
| Widow’s Pension/Bereavement Allowance | ||
| Working Tax Credit |
Chambers is centrally located within walking distance of the train station, secure car parks and the Courts.
St Pauls Chambers
Park Row House
19-20 Park Row
Leeds
LS1 5JF
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Phone: +44 (0)1132 455 866
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