UC review - over 16k childs savings

[Gabbygirl]

I need advice, i am so worried and stressed!

I have been asked to submit 4 months bank statement for a UC credit review. At first, I had absolutely no worries. I was talking to a mum at the school about it and she said to make sure that i upload my children's savings account as she had too due in her review.

I said to her that i didn't think they was included in my UC claim as they are children's savings accounts, in their own name. She said if I had access to them ( which of course i do, i set them up!) then they are included in my capital.

I rushed home and i've been doing some online research and the information is confusing but it does look like she is right.I can't believe i have let this happen.

I have gone through all my bank statements/uc payments and if my math's is correct i have been overpaid over £14,000 in the last 5 years.
( Any month over £16,000 savings i have calculated to owe back in full, any month over £6,000 but under £16,000 i have done £4.35 for every £250??)

Between nov 2025 and July 2020 - there is 11 months i was over the 16k and should of not got anything and besides 4 months, every other month the savings was inbetween £6000 and £15,999.

( I have some savings myself between £2,000 and £5,000 over the 5 years. I never included my children's savings, so depending how much i had, would take me over the 16k at times but not constant)

I feel sick with worry and i feel so guilty that such a stupid mistake can have a massive affect on my children and our home life. I am a single mum to 3 children and the thought of being taken away from breaks my heart. I know i have made a mistake and it is not fair for tax payers to have to pay for my mistake. I know i need to pay it all back and make everything, I am just so scared and i just don't know how.

I don't expect sympathy, this is my mistake and i need to handle it but any advice would be hugely appreciated.

You need to put them in ISA accounts. My daughter has one which we can't access but I need to put my boys into one too.

There is a bit about it on this page

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/universal-credit-money-savings-and-investments#childrens-savings

Children’s savers are your accounts for the benefit of your kids. The proceeds are considered yours and if that’s the only money you have you will need to pay it to hmrc. Simple.

Don’t go to deep into this.

This is illegal and not only will hmrc close those accounts they can prevent the children from opening another one while they live with OP. Please don’t give advice like this.

Why is it illegal? UC does actually make some parents do this. Children can have ISAs.

there is a home page with all the children's accounts on. I then select whose account i want to view and have to enter their on unique password.

Ok well mine says…welcome @upsetbetty and it’s a kids saver. But I’m the adult on the account. I can’t sugar coat add and remove money as I please…although I only add

She is under active investigation. Any movement into ISAs now will be seen as benefit fraud.

I presume i am the adult on the account as i am the one who opened the accounts for them and my children are all under 18.

If you have the option to remove money it’s in your name.

Yep and you could pile all your savings into your children’s accounts so you could claim UC and then take all your savings back before the children become adults. That can’t be allowed, surely?

If they are in the children's names ie opened using their ID and details then they are not considered to be capital for the purposes of UC even if the parent can access them.

She is not "under active investigation". She is going through a standard UC review which everyone gets at some point. It's normal procedure.

I am not under investigation this is a UC review.

Correct, this isn't allowed and would be noticed during a review. But children's savings are still not considered capital for the purposes of UC even if the parent can access them.

But if that was allowed, wouldn’t everyone do it? Ie, just put all their savings into accounts with their children’s names on, to avoid not being entitled to UC?

I am not under investigation, this is a UC review. I have no intension to move the money anyway. I will be gutted for my kids if i have to use their money to pay back my mistake but my main concern is clearing this up. I will do all i can to at minimum put back what my nan left them in her will and I'll make sure to use an ISA next time.

The crux of it is can you access the account to take money out? If so it counts as your money …
If it’s in child name and ONLY they can access when they become a certain age / an adult then you’re fine .

If the money is from birthday and Christmas gifts etc then your child is the beneficial owner and the funds will not be counted as capital. The issue you may have is if you've shifted some of your money to remain under the 6k limit.

Thank you for your advice. Was the amount you owed of this scale though?
I feel like 14k is so much money.

There are no bank cards for the accounts but i do use online banking to manage the accounts although never taken anything out.

OP I really wouldn't worry. There is so much misinformation and so many misconceptions about UC floating around the Internet. You'll find on threads like this that about 80% of posters are wrong because of these common (wrong) beliefs. Your ability to access to the children's savings accounts is irrelevant. Next you'll have people saying a partner can only stay 3 nights a week, you can't work any more than 16 hours a week or you'll lose your benefits and everyone on UC with more than 2 kids is going to be spending the extra child element on booze, tattoos and giant televisions.

I haven't purposely shifted my money. My own personal money has always been between £2,000 and £5,000 over the last 5 years. When i have anything over £4,000 it would push us over the 16k. It has happened 11 months out of the last 72. ( 5 years) and totals 14k overpayments. ( from my maths)

I have no way to prove it was from birthday/christmas. I do have a copy of my nans will which shows 2.5k per child?

But even if it’s obvious, if it’s allowed then it won’t cause any problem will it?

This does make it appear you could deprive yourself of capital by putting cash into your child’s savings which you control and use that capital however you like. That would be a massive loophole if it’s permissible!

Yeah unfortunately they are in your name! I have the same for my dd. She’s 12 and the account only switches over to her entirely at the age of 18. The money is technically mine I have just assigned it to my dc.

theres over 30k in my dds account and if I lost my job etc tomorrow or everything went to shit and I needed that money I could use it. I don’t see it as mine but technically it is…