to worry my friend could get in trouble for benefit fraud?

[smuggler]

Have recently become friends with a mum from dcs school. She has a 6 year old and a newborn with her dp. They have been together on and off for ten years. He lives with his mum, she says he can't be relied on to contribute to her household (drinks excessively and unreliability self-employed) and they are better off this way. He visits regularly to see the children, they do the school run together etc. He stays over 1-3 nights per week. He has a car and a work van and she uses the car to take their son to school while he uses the van so it's parked at her house a lot but as the neighbors see her using it everyday I presume they just think it's hers.

She refuses to live with him until he has a steady job and quits drinking but seeing as it's been 6 years since their ds was born I worry for her that they're pushing their luck by living like this and claiming benefits and that ultimately it'll be her and the children that suffer. Aibu to ask if anyone has experience/knows the criteria when considering benefit fraud? I would hate to see her get in trouble.

The staying over isn't an issue. The issue is whether they are maintaining a common household, i.e. does he have an address elsewhere, does he contribute to the rent/bills, are their bank accounts etc in joint names?

If he lives elsewhere, and is not linked to her address by accounts/utility bills/car registration etc, and does not contribute to the running of the household, then she's entitled to be treated as a single person and to the relevant benefits.

Providing he's registered for council tax/ post etc at his mums it would likely be ok.

Sounds to me like they should be claiming as a couple, even if he is unreliable.
Even if you are genuinely concerned and not thinking of reporting them I think you should keep out of it - what possible positive outcome is there for anyone? She stops doing it and is skint? She gets investigated? She isn't happy you mentioned it and never speaks to you again? Once she gets reported she will probably think it's you if you say anything to her.

Do you know she's claiming benefits though? Has she told you about her finances?

Also regardless of whether she is claiming benefits HE should be paying child support, so maybe he is.

They shouldn't be claiming as a couple if he is not contributing to the household or staying there on a regular basis. She'll be fine.

It doesn't sound like your friend is committing fraud, so while she will always run the risk of being reported simply because she's on benefits, she should be ok.

The shameful fact that the DP can get away without bothering to support his family properly because of our ridiculous benefit and CSA systems is another thread.

He's registered for post at his mum's and car is registered to him there. Her option is to end the relationship which she's contemplating doing. If she thought she could get in trouble for living as they are then she'd end it as her being able to provide for the kids is more important to her

He pays maintenance via the CSA but it isn't much because of being self-employed

My friend is a single mum to two DC. Her DP (not their dad) stays at hers most nights, but his registered address is at him mums, and that is where he pays the bills and contributes to the household.

She has been reported many, many times and she just shows them all her bills that she alone pays, tells them her sex life is not their business and gets on with doing the same.

why doesn't she lose the drunk and buy her own car?

I worried that staying 1-3 nights is pretty regular. It's different nights each week but it's more than some dps who live at home get. Also I wondered if she'd be better off having the car in her name but then the insurance would increase and she couldn't afford that

I think she's getting to that point special. I just don't want her to get in trouble in the meantime

She's not doing anything illegal re: benefits.

She is wasting her life on an irresponsible drunk tho.

It doesn't matter how many nights he stays. As long as his home is elsewhere, and he does not contribute financially to her household, they can do what they like.

It's quite possible that some busybody might report her at some point. Probably someone who's heard about the non-existent '3 nights a week' rule. But as long as her affairs show that she is effectively living as a single parent, she will be able to prove that she is not committing fraud.

I am a criminal lawyer, and "living together" investigations are my most common benefit fraud case.

I've read before that if they think he's contributing financially then they can be classed as a couple. Like if they ever do food shops together, or he's regularly seen taking shopping into the house and stuff like that. Cash in hand type financial contributions. It doesn't have to be just bills.

Can they ask for evidence from him too? Because he doesn't pay his mum anything which I think looks bad also. So would the school run thing mean being seen as a couple? They also holiday together.

I'm aware of someone who's claiming housing benefit amongst others whilst working and claiming as a single parent when her partner lives with her. He has his post sent elsewhere though. I don't know her address so not sure how to go about reporting her. Your friend isn't committing fraud but when he moves in permanently she may have to inform whoever deals with it