aquaintance is frauduntly claiming benefits..... aibu to want to shop her

[ratherstayanno]

I cant say its a friend. Its more of an aquaintance. She is also 'sort of friendly' with someone else i know.

She was seperated from her husband. They both had seperate houses. He would go to hers everyday to help look after their DD, she would walk his dog and her dog. They weekly go dancing and socialise together.

Shes alwasys saying how skint she is, cant afford nursery, shopping in farm foods and car boots. End of last year and all of a sudden she is going on a 3 week holiday to america. With him.
Bit odd i thought, but then i hear they are back together. Apparently he stays everynight, but just takes a carrier bag of stuff. They both still have their own ( mortgaged) houses.
She is still claming single persons tax credits. I know this for a fact.
He has just brought her a new car and they have booked 2 holidays before june this year.

She was invited, with her child to a recent fundrasing event. She asked if she could bring her husband along.

This is relevent as shes not hiding the fac they are back togther, but is still openingly claiming tax credits for single person.

It sort of bothers me. But i dont know if i should actually do anything about it or not.

you sound like a little gem, if this was a close friend would you do the same? keep your nose out of things that dont concern you. Stop being so nosey!

you sound like a busybody and this is all hearsay
sorry

Agree with jujubean... At the end of the day if there is a fraud being committed surely the OP should just report it and allow the agencies to deal with it. End of story !

According tobenefit laws you are deemed to be "living together" if you spend more than 3 nights a week at a property, because it's mor than half a week. DWP and HMRC don't question people about who pays what, where you sleep, or whether you have sex with the person. I know from working for DWP.
It's a tough call really. I have a friend who did this for a long time, and was always in two minds whether to report her, because on the one hand, as people have said, best to stay out of it, but on the other hand, we all pay taxes and this person is claiming more than her fair share. Tax credits are generous enough if you're honest, there's no need to lie.
I'd be tempted to shop them, but only if you're certain about the information you have. They'd probably have the fraud section check up on her for a while before prosecuting or anything anyway.

I don't have a link but it is true because my SIL was charged for it. I'll try and find a link.

but im not being nosey

she has told me all this info. It is wrong.
It feels wrong for me to do nothing about it.
( she is also telling other people the same things)

Hequt - yes, they might be better off if they moved back in together. BUT they are still having their income topped up WRONGLY by the govt to the tune of a couple of hundread plus 80% of childcare.

This extra 'top up' is afforing them new cars and exotic holidays.

How is that fair?
Oh - its not, its illegal.

Is nobody going to engage me in the financial aspect of it and how it costs more to run 2 houses than she's getting / would lose on tax credits and so on financial grounds it doesn't even make SENSE to pretend to not be living together!

Paying 2 sets of bills in order to not lose a couple of hundred quid is COSTING you money!

Someone please acknowledge that

im certain about the information. She told me herself.

heQuet....i see what you mean!!

Are you sure he is not just paying for a holiday for them to have together as a family ? Lot of divorced couples do this. Also if he is supporting a lifestyle of his own, I am sure he would be supporting her financially aswell and all that is taken into account

scroll down to the TC bit.

If they are married or living together, his income should be taken into account.

It may be already.

and would you do the same to a friend? doubt it!

thank you. x post.

but if they didn't get the 'top up' they could buy the holidays from the mortgage and bill money they'd no longer be paying on the second house!

Because they'd be saving that money.

Don't make me cry again!!!!!!!

but its not costing her money is it.

Yes, they are running two sets of houses. Yes, SHE would be better off and they would only have one set of bills to pay if he moved back in.

But, it seems they can afford to pay for two set, as hers is being topped up by the govt.

When they sell both houses, they will have made money and be able to afford something bigger/nicer area or whatever, based on their fraud.

I'd keep out of it if I were you. What will you get out of reporting her anyway?

50 quid jamesandthegiantbanana

"yes, they might be better off if they moved back in together. BUT they are still having their income topped up WRONGLY by the govt to the tune of a couple of hundread plus 80% of childcare. "
yup. and so doesn't that tell you that it doesn't make sense for that to be the truth? They are choosing to be WORSE off financially overall by maintaining 2 houses. Doesn't that suggest that for whatever reason, they aren't ready to be a family again yet? THAT'S why they are paying for 2 houses!

"This extra 'top up' is afforing them new cars and exotic holidays."
and if they moved in together, she'd lose some tax credits, and gain all his wage into the household income - only one house to run - save what? a thousand or more, 1500? 2000? a month. so she looses 200 and some childcare costs and gains hundreds or maybe a thousand or two. not running two houses would then afford them cars and holidays!

look, really. i dont know why they are/have done it.

It makes no sense to me. ALl i know, is that it is happening.

She has told me herself.

Its wrong, i know its wrong and i dont know what, if anything to do about it.

If someone was stealing cars, or from houses to the tune of several hundred a month, then people would say ' shop them'. But everyone is saying dont... is is not so bad to steal beacuse its from the govt rather than a person?

Agree with Mutt.

It's the same old story, Poster comes on and says "So-and-so is on benefits and yet they eat diamonds and have a chauffeur driven Bently. I know that so-and-so is claiming X amount of benefits and it's not FAIR"

Everyone else says - keep out of it, you don't know all the circumstances

OP throws dummy, toys, blankets, mattress, shoes and nappy out of pram.

single person tax credits don't amount to much, and noone likes a grass....

I've not read through the whole thread, but I would call your local anonymous "shop the fraud claims" hotline and let those in the know decide if she's in the wrong or not.

x-post again.

I'm sorry OP, I give up. I've tried. If they are both working, it doesn't make financial sense to live apart for the sake of a bit of tax credit money. It just doesn't.

Do what you think is best.

Hmm.

If she is "with" this bloke, it's no different surely than if they had a pied-a-terre surely?
They are not loosing money by paying their mortgages iyswim.

It is morally wrong non?