Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to shop someone who is screwing the benefits system?

101 replies

ilikeyoursleeves · 25/03/2010 20:13

Not sure what to do here but this situation is making me increasingly angry. My sister and her DP don't work and both are taking the benefits system for a complete ride. My sister has barely ever worked consistently (she usually lasts a few months before she chucks it), even though she is totally capable of it. My parents have doled her out lots of times and now she is with her DP who pays for everything (from money he mainly gets from his mum, even though he is in his mid 40's). My sister however continues to claim benefits and apparantly has kept on her old council flat and gets income that way (I have no idea how though, I only heard that through her DP when they had temporarily separated last year). She has that benefits entitlement syndrome going on eg, I asked her if she was returning to work after her having her DD and her reply was 'Why should I?'.

Her DP has been off his work for months now with a 'shoulder & back injury' that he got from working on roadworks. He has applied for compensation and says he is hoping to get at least £100k . If his injury was 100% genuine then fair enough, but for months he has been doing manual work on the sly, throwing his DD up in the air, doing housework and apparantly he is now working on a building site for cash in hand! He gloats all the time that his court case is coming up and how much money he might get, with a wink as he knows he is taking the system for a ride.

I have been an honest taxpayer for my whole working life and TBH I am getting to seething point about my sister and her DP. DH and I work, and have always worked, and I just think why are we doing this while others squeeze the state dry when they don't need to! I just think it would be so unfair if they get money that would take us years to earn, from them talking absolute bullshit and being totally dishonest.

So I am tempted so say something to someone but don't know who.

What do you think I should do?

OP posts:
thesecondcoming · 25/03/2010 21:47

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

GypsyMoth · 25/03/2010 21:50

sorry op,i dont understand which benefits they are fraudulently claiming??

what is it you want to report? his injury which you feel is faked? does he claim benefit for this too?

her council flat?? (think you CAN do that,read somewhere here on mn a while back)

Original poster
ilikeyoursleeves · 25/03/2010 21:52

That's the thing, I wouldn't want them to know it was me to shopped them. I don't necessarliy want them to go through a horrible process but then on the other hand I will feel sick if he gets £100k for absolutely nothing!

Not sure if my parents would do anything, my sister is in her late 30's now and needs to sort herself out, not get others to do it. But then not sure if she is capable of that!

OP posts:
EdgeofReason · 25/03/2010 21:59

ok tell me the details and I'll shop them. And anyway might not know its you - folk like that tend to crow about their good fortune. Never laughed more than on a holiday with a scrounger who bragged about his 'free' holiday and the copper who was a guest who spent a week getting enough detail to get him nicked in the first week and then told him so he didnt enjoy the second.

thesecondcoming · 25/03/2010 21:59

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

GypsyMoth · 25/03/2010 22:03

so its not about benefits....its about a compensation payout?

i would wait....if he does get a payout,THEN the benfits agency will need to know! for definite

EdgeofReason · 25/03/2010 22:05

Your parents would feel relieved that one of their offpsring had morals and hadn't disgraced them

starkadder · 25/03/2010 22:15

YANBU to want to shop them, or even to shop them, but I would be careful that you aren't doing it because of jealousy of the potential 100K they might get. It would be horribly unfair if they got all that undeserved money but it would also be much better for you if you just washed your hands of it and didn't let it bother you.

MillyMollyMoo · 25/03/2010 22:18

If he gets £100k then there will have to be some serious long term health issue which may not be apparent now but could cause him problems in the future.
And on the bright side he won't be able to claim anything with that in the bank.
And he's an idiot if he works cash in hand on a building site, anything goes wrong they will deny he was ever there and wouldn't pay out death in service cover etc.

GypsyMoth · 25/03/2010 22:22

i cant see where the benefit fraud is being comitted,not from what you've posted?

thesecondcoming · 25/03/2010 22:23

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

catsmother · 25/03/2010 22:27

Do all those suggesting that they shouldn't be shopped because it would upset the family think therefore than NO-ONE cheating the system should ever be reported ??!!

After all, everyone's got family .... the prosecution of every cheat probably upsets someone, somewhere down the line who's an innocent party.

Tanga · 25/03/2010 22:28

Not understanding the posts that make the fallout the OP's responsibility? Actually as a tax payer I really don't feel like supporting cheats and frauds just because their mummies and daddies might be upset if I didn't.

It's not very politically correct but I feel the same, OP. I know someone who has never worked (and is over 40) who lives in a 3 bedroom house, 2 kids, a foreign holiday every year plus 3 or 4 shorter UK holidays (Stratford, London, Bath and Legoland last year)and who openly says that the 'suits' (ie people who work for a living) are 'mugs'.

I tell you what might be interesting. Everyone who wants to support those who have no intention of supporting themselves can opt into tax bracket 'A' and those who actually would rather everyone who is capable of working did so (and was provided with work by the gov) can opt into tax bracket 'B'. (and before anyone starts I'm not saying that mothers with 2 week old infants be horsewhipped into sweatshops) Let's see how many people want to support poeple like the Op's sister then.

EmilyStrange · 25/03/2010 22:29

What about your neice, would this not affect her dreadfully. And I think you should really think through the consequences of such an action, it could rip your family apart. Would your parents really want you to do this? TBH I am shocked by this thread. It smacks of Farenheit 451.

EdgeofReason · 25/03/2010 22:30

Precisely catsmother. and I repeat its YOU and ME they're stealing from. If they robbed my bag I'd shop them, if they steal my tax money same goes. Would do this to anyone I know and would comfortably look them in the eye and say you're stealing from me so stop or I will act. No question.

monoid · 25/03/2010 22:30

I think that sometimes it is hard to not commit benefit fraud. My brother and his girlfriend have just moved in together as they are expecting their first child. They aren't committing benefit fraud as they want to do it properly BUT they would be so much better off to commit fraud despite the fact that my brother works full time and his girlfriend works part time. It's not fair that they work so hard for nothing, so I can understand why people would do it.

However, as it is your sister and she could get in serious trouble for this, I think you need to give her the option of sorting it out. I realise that in this case it would not be anonomous, but I think I would have to throw a life line to someone close to me. Even if you don't grass them up, someone will eventually, so talking them out of it now must be the best way to go, I reckon.

I just really hope you can decide on a course of action that you can live with.

Trafficcone · 25/03/2010 22:32

They are breaking the law. You shouldn't even have to hesitate over this. Its ok though, because they WILL get caught eventually and the longer it goes on the more likely a custodial sentence is.
Shop them now while the overpayment is smaller and prevent your sister getting a criminal record.

beammeupscotty · 25/03/2010 22:34

Shop them - you're paying for them, I'm paying for them, we're all paying for fitforfa lazy scroungers, and I for one, am sick of it

thesecondcoming · 25/03/2010 22:34

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

GypsyMoth · 25/03/2010 22:38

everyone saying 'shop them'.....can you point out which benefit they are claiming fraudulently please??

GypsyMoth · 25/03/2010 22:42

you CAN legally sub-let a council property...

op has no clue about which benefits,just a malicious ex partners say!

EdgeofReason · 25/03/2010 22:45

OK missing the fundamentals here - is it right to not work generally and sub let, cash in hand, compensation? - it's a whole cultural thing that I'd be ashamed and devastated to be associated with. Totally accept that there are millions of benefits claiments that are justified but it mocks those folk as well w- the population that think it's ok to stay like that and try and find ways to get more.

GypsyMoth · 25/03/2010 22:50

is it right to not work generally and sub let, cash in hand, compensation?

right or wrong...who knows? but all those things on their own are legal....we dont know which benefits are being claimed alongside them tho.....so how can op 'shop' her sister?

EdgeofReason · 25/03/2010 22:54

Exactly who knows. But if you're at the point where you might shop your sister, and not take that lightly, then I'm guessing OP knows enough. Would tell benefits clan actual income and let them decide. But would give sis one chance to resolve and stop claiming or bragging whichever is true. And get a job

JuJusDad · 25/03/2010 22:58

TBB - you CAN NOT legally sublet a council property.