I got a letter last month from local job centre to say that I was being invited to an interview under caution that related to me not declaring a change of circumstances when I was claiming Income Support. Called them up to ask them more about it and they said that they couldn't give me any further details over the phone and that really the whole purpose of the interview was so that they could tell me more about what is going on. Anyway, I was going on holiday the following day and asked the lady if we could re-schedule the interview. She very kindy agreed and I had completely pushed any thought of IUC to the the back of my mind until a letter arrived this morning saying that the interview will take place next week! This letter also goes on to say that they have arranged this interview because they believe that there are grounds for suspecting that I have a committed a criminal offence in relation to my claim for Income Support because of living with someone as a husband and wife/civil partner!!!!!!!! OMG!! Completely shocked!!

Anyway, first of all I completely panicked and now, having spend hours actually reading stories that seem similar to mine on this forum I'm convinced that these people will try to send me to prison or lumber me with a criminal record even though I've done nothing wrong.

I was claiming IS between Dec. 07 and Jan. 09 because my husband left me while I was still pregnant. With the benefit of hindsight, I don't really blame him for leaving me because I was an absolute nightmare to live with....had awful mood swings and a few months after our daughter was born I was diagnosed with post natal depression. Although relations between us were initially strained when he moved out in Sept. 07 by the time our daughter was born in Jan. 08 we decided that we would try our best to be civil towards each other for the sake of providing some sort of normality for our child. In practice, this meant that I allowed him to attend the birth of our child and visitation whenever he wanted. This helped me alot at the time because some days all I did for hours at a time was to cry and it was good to know that he was there to take the pressure off by taking our daughter out for a walk or even just letting me get a few hours sleep.

When I finally started taking anti-depressants to help me cope with my PND I slowly returned to the person that I had been pre-pregnancy. My husband and I could be in the same room again without all hell breaking loose and I started to enjoy his company again. So, we started to re-build our relationship.It was a slow process because my husband was still nervous that I would still be prone to mood swings and I had to deal with the fact that he had lived as a single man during our time apart. This culminated in my husband moving back in with me in February of this year.

So there's the background to everything, but now, here's why I'm really worried:

Eventhough my husband wasn't living with me, all of his post was still coming here. All of the direct debits were still coming out of his account - this was because I have really bad credit and had only been using a savings account that didn't have a direct debit facility. Apart from the money for the car insurance, I was actually giving my husband cash for everything else. And then there's the fact that certainly from Nov. 08 - Jan. 09 he was visiting the property almost everyday and occassionally stayed over at night time.

But what can I tell this people to prove that we weren't living together as a married couple and that he had his life and I had mine??? Is it not enough for them to see that when he did move back in with me in Feb that we informed all of the relevant authorities? We let tax credits, housing benefit, council tax benefits and JSA know what was going on. Subsequently we have just recently been investigated by the Tax Credits people and they found absolutley no anomalies whatsoever in our claim and happily backdated our claim to Feb. 09. Housing Benefit must have asked us to provide them with aprox. 100 documents over the past 6mths and every time we have provided them with the evidence that they have asked for - no matter how obscure!

Not to mention the fact that I would have been better off if my husband had been living with me during the period that I was claiming income support. He has a low income so we would still have gotten WTC and some help towards housing and council tax benefit so there was actually no financial gain at all by me claiming IS!

I am absolutely terrified about attending this interview next week and I just don't know what to do. I know that I should probably seek legal advice, but to be honest I don't think that I could face the stress of having this hanging over me for another few weeks. I am going out of my mind with worry that they will take me to court and that I will get a criminal record, because I am about to start studying for a degree in Criminal Justice and having a criminal record we effectively render me unemployable within the Criminal Justice arena. I'm also worried that they will stop the benefits that my husband and I currently receive because there is no way we could survive if they do that.

Can anybody advise me what the likely outcome of this might be?

Thanks.

Hi Clarabelle,

I don't know anything about this area and someone with expertise is sure to come along later, but having read your post; surely your husband can provide proof that he was living elsewhere, either through rent agreement, proof of rent paid or letters from landlords (friends) confirming that he was resident at their properties for this period?

Sweeney

Oh, and another thing that I forgot to mention was that I actually discussed the all of this with the chap who did my return to work interviews at the job centre. I even told him that I was thinking of getting back with my husband but was still waiting until I felt that the time was right and the that I was sure that the marriage was sustainable.

Wow, thanks for the quick response Sweeney. My husband was staying with 2 different sets of relatives during our separation. And actually, his uncle has already provided a letter to housing benefit to confirm that he used to stay with him at the weekends so that he could have better access to seeing our daughter. My husband spent the remainder of his time living with another cousin and I'm sure that she could write a letter to that effect.

This is the guidance DM's use when making decisions:

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/ch11-23254.pdf

In an IUC, it is taped. You are entitled to a copy of that tape upon request. The copy they will keep for their records will be placed in a sealed bag, which you will witness. They are not allowed to intimidate you - and they wouldn't be so daft to as it is on tape. Some of the questions may seem accusotory or uncomfortable, but they are there to get to the bottom of things. They will advise you of your rights (including the right to not say anything) and they will put their evidence to you, and ask for your side of the story. An IUC is not ALWAYS a bad thing. It's the way it is portrayed because on forums such as these, people come either for help or to air their grievances. It is not often you will hear someone recounting a good outcome on help seeking forums, but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen. The other side of the coin is, though that DWP have to deal with the evidence they have. And that evidence may point to LTAHAW, even when it really isn't the case. This is what the IUC is about. Gathering facts, asking for your side. They will also ask you a variety of questions. ommon questions include:

• Who owns the accommodation?
  
• How did you find this accommodation?
  
• If there is no formal agreement in place, why not?
  
• Where do you watch television, listen to music?
  
• What arrangements do you have for storing food, clothing, toiletries, personal belongings?
  
• Who owns the furniture?
  
• Has anything been bought jointly for the accommodation?
  
• What arrangements have you made for paying for accommodation and household bills?
  
• How is the household income shared or used?
  
• Do your pool their money? If so, is this all your income or only the money for a specific purpose such as shopping or bills?
  
• Do you have any joint bank accounts, credit accounts or loans? If so, what are they used for?
  
• Would one of you provide long-term financial support to the other if they had no income?
  
• If there are no financial arrangements, why not?
  
• Have the financial arrangements always been the same or have they changed? If so, how and when?
  
• How much does each person contribute to the bills, e.g. rent, fuel?
  
• Whose name is on the bills, e.g. utility bills?
  
• Do you expect the financial arrangements to change, and if so, how?
  
• Who maintains the property?
  
• How is housework divided up?
  
• Who is responsible for shopping?
  
• Who prepares meals? Do you eat together?
  
• Who cleans any shared rooms?
  
• Who does the laundry?
  
• Who pays for household repairs?
  
• How do you spend your time at home when you are both there?
  
• Do you go out together, just the two of you or as part of a group?
  
• Do you think friends, relatives and neighbours think of you as a couple?
  
• Do you watch television/videos/DVDs together?
  
• Do you go to each other’s family celebrations?
  
• Do you entertain friends jointly?
  
• Do you have shared interests or hobbies?
  
• Are holidays taken together?
  
• How have you shared leisure time in the past?
  
• What are your plans in the short, medium and long term?
  
• If the arrangement is:
  
• temporary, what are you doing to find alternative accommodation?
  
• longer term, why?
  
• Do you intend living in separate accommodation in the near future?
  
• Do you have any shared plans, such as marriage, civil partnership, or buying property together?