DWP FRAUD Dept!

[Guardsman18]

Hi, I am hoping someone is on here who can help me with a problem I have regarding Job Seekers Allowance and being asked to pay it back.

Last year I was on JSA, had some money in a pension (£15000) which after tax became £13000 something). I then had a downstairs loo put in with the money. When asked at the Job Centre whether I had savings of £16,000 or more, I truthfully replied that I didn't.

Fast forward to February of this year and the DWP Fraud dept are saying that the tax office has told them that as I had more than £16000, I should not have claimed JSA. (Bearing in mind that I am aware that HMRC would have notified different departments that I had this money as I had paid tax.)

I am no longer on JSA but they are insisting that as I had over £160000 from Jul 17 - Mar 18, they want the money back. HMRC have no idea where this figure has come from and getting hold of them is nigh on impossible.

I rang the Debt Management Team who already have the debt in their system! A part of me feels like not bothering to argue and offer a small amount each month, if they accept it that is.

On the other hand, they are just wrong aren't they? They agree I am not a fraudster and that I just made a mistake.

Has anybody else been involved with them? Thank you

Oh was it a new toilet set up? Slightly different then... I dont know

So how much did you have in those accounts?

Stop banging on about 16 grand. It's over 6 that affect benefits it doesn't stop you claim them. Did you have over 6 grand in those accounts and did you declare it when you claimed?

Calm down gamerchick! It's the letter that is 'banging on' about £16000.

Over £6000 is news to me. Which is why I posted - to get people's experiences and if they had had any with this situation.

Not to get slated for having the money - which incidentally I have worked very hard for in some rotten jobs! - or wondering how I will live in my old age!

I shouldn't have to justify myself but I'll bet if I told you that my adopted son has sn, was denied disability allowance and because he spends so long in the bathroom in the morning, I had to shit in a box when I couldn't hold it in anymore. Does that make you more sympathetic?

Over £16K and you are not elligible at all. That's what they would have said. However, anything over £6K and you're entitlement is affected. You are supposed to report any changes.

If you'd declared it and all together you had more than £16K, your entitlement would have stopped. If under, it would have been reduced. Whether the reduction would have stopped after you got your savings under £6K would have depend on the reason for the toilet and what you did exactly. You should have contacted them to ask if they would have allowed or if it would have been considered deprivation of capital as not a necessary spend.

You will most likely have to repay.

Thanks swing. Is this what you know from experience or something to do with your job?

I am sure when applying for JSA I had to put the amount of money I had in each account I had, any investments and pensions. Did you not have to do that?

When I first signed for JSA I didn't have the money

I shouldn't have to justify myself but I'll bet if I told you that my adopted son has sn, was denied disability allowance and because he spends so long in the bathroom in the morning, I had to shit in a box when I couldn't hold it in anymore. Does that make you more sympathetic*

I have a SN kid as well but I can tell you the dwp won't care about any of those details. Just the facts! This isn't about sympathy.

If you had more than 6 grand in those accounts when you made that claim which would have affected how much you got from them. Then you'll need to pay back the overpayment. Did you tell them how much you had in your bank accounts?

Ah so you didn't declare it as a change in circumstances?

I am sure when applying for JSA I had to put the amount of money I had in each account I had, any investments and pensions. You don't have to declare money that is in your pension fund, only income from a pension or withdrawals.

Likewise you're not expected to start withdrawing money from your pension in order to support yourself instead of claiming benefits. If you choose to do so then you must declare it as income.

Thanks everyone. Much appreciated. Looks like I'll be sorting out a payment arrangement tomorrow!

A JSA claim form asks if you have savings over £6,000. A linkwww.whatdotheyknow.com/request/185491/response/456544/attach/html/4/JSA1.pdf.html

To have accurately calculated an overpayment they will have either asked you to obtain and send in copies of statements from ALL your accounts or they will have obtained themselves from the bank using the Social Security Fraud Act.

It is not just the money in your savings account, it is the total amount across all your accounts.

What I would advise you to do if your child is sn and got no award for dla or pip (age dependant) is revisit and apply again.

There are plenty of us here who could help or advise who could help in getting it. It's all in the wording and evidence.

Hi ceecee. Thanks for this information. Is the related to your job or just that you have experience of it?

It is common knowledge that over 6ooo pounds affects benefit entitlement. And it is across all your accounts. Unless it was contribution based JSA?

It is explained explicitly when you start claiming that you have to declare any change in your circumstances, small or large. Yours was exceptionally large, yet you didn’t tell them. Ignorance isn’t an excuse.

This is your mistake and you owe them the money; you need to set up a plan.

Consider me told!