to be really annoyed that my friend fiddling her tax credits

[cedar12]

She is getting £600 per month tax credits which she shouldnt be getting. She is telling them that her children are living with her mum, but she is living with her husband. Her argument is that they really need the money they really skint and have huge debts(due to her hugely over spending).
She stays at her mums a couple of nights a week but doesnt live there. Finding this really hard to get my head around especially as one of my friends has just been made redundant and is really struggling. She is a good friend in lots of ways just wish she would take responsibility for her finances. What should I do?

It's not according to me that benefit fraud is lower than tax evasion Niceguy. These are official figures. The first from Dept of work and pensions and the second from the treasury.

And fraud is not fraud when the first is to supplement the pittance paid in official benefits and the second is to stay even more obscenely rich.

enjoying thecalm tax avoidance is the same as tax evasion in any other language. Tax avoidance is legal because governments make laws favourable to their rich friends but that doesn't mean it's a just law.

It's impressive that you know how much she claims in respect of the three broad tax credit categories (child; working; childcare), what goes into her bank account, and for which tax year, and from which address(es) it's claimed, topped off with full details of her partner's income and deductibles. You must be awfully close? Must share gossip over a coffee on Monday, if you can rip yourself away from the Daily Mail.

Your rhetorical question enjoying as to whether I would pay more income tax than I needed to is: YES. Because I'm an old fashioned girl who believes in contributing to society which means - first and foremost - paying your taxes in proportion to what you earn.

Barclays paid £113 million in corporation tax on £11.6 profit in 2009. That's not v proportionate is it?

So glasnost since tax evasion is not as bad as murder, which is not as bad as genocide, you would have to agree by your argument that the first two are acceptable forms of law breaking because they are not as bad as something else that is worse.
I agree there are far worse crimes out there but it does not stop benefit fraud being either illegal or immoral.

i can imagine that it is easy to lie to the tax credits?
they dont actually check do they?

not that i would

I think I'll leave you to the usual friday night bun fight over benefit fraud but clutteredup my simple point is you cannot equate benefit fraud worth a relatively paltry amount compared to the amounts evaded. I'm not condoning benefit fraud but I think tax evasion is immeasurably worse and when the gov sets up hotlines to snitch on tax evaders then they at least couldn't be accused of hypocrisy.

They can and do check. Anyway as I try to explain to my DS it doesn't mean it's OK if you don't get caught. I'm just interested in what kind of morals people who lie and cheat the system are bringing their children up with. As an earlier post it is not just the financial position I have an issue with it's the dishonesty. It's no better to steal a lot of money or a little it's still theft, it's still law breaking whatever law you choose to break, it is still wrong.

Easy - report her!
She is stealing directly from you.
You pay taxes in one way or another - either income tax or VAT.

Therefore, she is taking your money unlawfully and unfairly, which you paid to put towards your or your children's education, health or law & order.
Unless, of course, you are happy funding her overspending and poor budgeting ways?

We need more examples made of people to stop others "trying it on" at the expense of those who play by the rules.

For gods sake if you want someone to be annoyed at how about the greedy fuc**ng bankers, govt wasting money fighting illegal wars for American causes to name but 2, huge companies paying 2% tax, MPs claiming for moats and porn films to name but a few ,rather than some poor hard up bint trying to scrape together enough to live on.But wait..that's not as much fun is it?

Two wrongs don't make a right!

she is very lucky to have a helpful friend like you

She's not a hard up bint, princessparty. She's got into major debt of her own making, so she should pay it off - not us! She could enter into an IVA or DMP to get it paid off, and also go to her GP and ask for counselling re. the spending habit. Why should we pay for it? I'm a skint lone parent but I don't lie to tax credits to get more money ffs.

Report her.

I can't believe how many people would report their friends. I find it sickening.

Has she had any debt counselling to freeze her interest and start repaying them at a lower negotiated level? I would be telling her she needs to do that.

I find it sickening that people are prepared to steal off of their friends, and expect to get away with it!

As someone said earlier, 2 wrongs don't make a right. Denunciation is vile (apart for crimes obviously).
I wish people would get so hysterical about corporate tax evasion with government backing, see This

you'd have fitted right in in Nazi Germany. What on earth has this to do with you? I wish I had as much time and little to worry about as you appear to have in which I could thoroughly nosey into my friend's supposed finances and post a very long series of messages on here about it??? There are far worse people in society- she has 3 kids and is working- some people don't work by choice their entire lives.

I didn't dare go for the German analogy tl10

I didn't think we had secret police in the UK anyway.

"Tax avoidance costs this country more money than benefit fraud". Oh well that's ok then. Let's all commit benefit fraud and see how long this country remains standing.

I'm sorry yes perhaps too far but this made me angry! I've been paying heftier and heftier taxes since I was 16 but I don't think it gives me some superior right to impose myself as the chief of benefit police! To be honest- and it is seriously nothing to do with any of us- but I would be far more sniffy if her friend stopped paying what she owed and made herself bankrupt, didn't work and actually left the kids at her mum's.

Yeah because reporting her will really help her situation

Get on with your own life and stop worrying about her financials. At least she is actually working rather than living soley off the state which she might do if all this went to court and she lost her job as a result. I'm sure her conscience will catch up in time and she'll sort herself out. If she was claiming every benefit under the sun and off to Mauritius 3x a year you might have a point tho.

Jeez I wish people would get more involved if they suspect a neighbour is abusing their kids than this kind of situation

wouldn't dream of reporting her if i looked on her as a friend as i could never forgive myself but see you point in terms of frustration. I think this says more about your friendship and how you view her to be honest - maybe hidden resentment as i don't think you would judge a real friend so harshly.