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  1. Hey All Just a quick post tomorrow i will be going to attend a interview at the dwp for a interview under caution for claiming whilst my partner was working. its not all as it seems hes on a 0 hour contract and most weeks he works but certain times of the year work dies down which leaves them with no money and is unpredictable when it will restart, they was going through a hard time and didn't declare income as it is my claim and i was undergoing depression as i lost twins and nearly lost my mum to cancer then got pregnant a month after losing twin so i wasn't in the best place and im just getting back to myself. I did stop claiming herself and declared income as she is still entitled to housing benefit and council tax as its a low income, i worked out i owe around 5000 claimed for under 12 months, will i go to prison? has anyone been through this situation? does anyone know what will happen?
  2. Unhappy Housing benefit under caution interview Hi I would like some advise Last week I got a letter from housing benefit about an interview under caution I started my claim in 2010 and was renting a house that my brother owned I was honest with the council and told them about this. At the end of 2010 I had a big falling out with my sis in law and she threatened to kick me out and make life difficult for me. To avoid this my brother put my name on the house title deeds so that if anything happened to him I would still have a place to live. Through out the whole time I was still paying u brother rent. Twice after this someone from the council came out to make sure my claim was right and no one mentioned anything. A name on a title deed is not something that can be hidden it is on government record and information that can be obtained at anytime. I am now worried that they think j have bought the house from my brother but no more net was exchanged I did not take out a mortgage or had any other interest in the house my name was purely on the title deed for the security of my children. I am really worried and am sick with worry doea anyone have any advice
  3. Hi there, I have recently been stopped and cautioned by a Revenue Protection Officer at an un-manned train station. I usually buy a ticket whenever I travel on public transport. This time, however, I had got on a train at a manned station in a rush. I had my money ready to pay the fare but since no conductor passed on the train I couldn't purchase a ticket. I still had the money in my hand when I was stopped by the officer when I got off the train so it was clear I had the intention of paying the fare. After I gave the officer my details he told me I would receive a letter in a few weeks time asking me to pay the fare. However, after reading the previous thread and the replies I am now worried about the consequences. I understand it is a criminal offence but does every offender get convicted or can it be dealt with simply through a fine? Thank you for your reply. Elaine
  4. hi all, quick question, I got a letter asking me to attend said interview, from what I gathered over the phone its about when I was on jca and doing a part time college course (I think I didn't put my student loan down as income) this was almost 2 years ago and im not stressing about it. Anyway my question - I attend the interview (at my local council building as it was a Saturday) but the place was locked, no lights on 9i took photos) and nobody there so what should I do? as I don't want to get punished for non attendance cheers guys
  5. Dear all, In mid-May I was stopped by an inspector after touching into a station and was caught using my friend’s 18+ oyster which has a monthly travel card on, I initially remained quiet because I thought I was under arrest. The inspector then threatened me if I kept quiet she will call the police and the police will ask me the questions, I did not know if she has the right to do so but I flustered upon hearing possible police intervention and obeyed. She then took her notebook out and asked me a series of questions, while another guy went to get the oyster history printout of both oyster cards she found in my holder (I was carrying my friend’s oyster and my old photocard which I kept as souvenir after its expiry). She also got another lady to take my address and call someone else up to check the validity of my address. I cooperated and answered all her questions honestly, however I received rather racist comments during the interview which obviously was not recorded in her notes. At the end of interview she pulled out a small rectangular yellow card and read the words out to me, it was along the line of “you are not under arrest and you do not have to stay with me”. I am certain about the “you do not have to stay with me” part because I clearly remember feeling very confused. She then added a question to her notebook and asked me “I read these words out to you [motion towards yellow card], yes or no?”, to which I said “yes” because, well, she did. She read her notes out and asked me to sign at the bottom, in her notes she said I deliberately tried to hide my friend’s oyster by giving her my old oyster first, which does not match the facts because she opened my oyster holder herself (without my permission!) and found my friend’s oyster before I took my old oyster out. By no means was I trying to hide anything so I immediately disagreed with her, and she changed her notes into a neutral statement of me presenting her with two oysters. However when I got the prosecution letter earlier this week, the statement of facts clearly says I initially showed my old oyster and before presenting my friend’s oyster when being asked. The typed version of notes from her notebook, which does not have my signature, also incorrectly says she cautioned me before asking me any questions. Apart from this she also changed my answer to one of her questions, from “my friend bought it (the pass)” to “I asked my friend to buy it (the monthly travelcard) for me”. I am very very worried now, what could/should I do? If I write to them to ask for settlement out of court, would this indirectly means I agree with the evidences? If I do so and they do not accept my offer of settling out of court, would I still be able to choose to plead not guilty and would the letter I wrote make any difference to the trial? Would the omission of caution make any difference to the validity to the statement? If I knew I did not have to stay with the inspector before answering any questions at the very least I would have kept my mouth shut! I have read through a lot of threads on this forum but don’t seem to find a similar case, thank you very much for everyone’s patience and time to read my entire post up to here. Any help would be gratefully appreciated, thank you very much in advance!
  6. Hello, This is my first post and I'm so grateful to have found this site and really hoping that someone may be able to help me. I have been asked to attend an Interview Under Caution on Monday and need to prepare myself. My story is that last year I was living in rented accommodation that I could no longer afford so was looking for a private tenancy for myself and young daughter. My neighbour who was a friend offered to rent me two bedrooms, a living room, bathroom and shared kitchen. I gladly accepted and moved in on the 1st March 2013. I was working 23 hours at the time and received WTC, CTC, CB and HB. I notified them of my move and completed a tenancy agreement with my local authority stating what I received for my rent etc. In October 2013, I left my job to pursue further training in which I am in the assessment stages and hope to be qualified and working by late Summer. I declared myself self-employed from 1st January 2014 and notified both HMRC and LA. The relationship between myself and my landlord developed over late last year and his divorce was finalised in December 2013. I have to attend the interview as they believe I am living with my partner. My question is, what defines a couple? I pay rent to him every month and I pay for everything with regards to my daughter, groceries, my debts, car etc myself. He does not support me in anyway financially. So what are we doing wrong in the eyes of the law?? I am so confused and unsure what they are going to ask and present to me as evidence?? Please help!
  7. Hi There Caught up in an unfortunate situation and need advise on next steps. Issue : I and my wife are good, hard working, law abiding, tax paying citizens. On 29-Sep, it was a stressful day after bad arguments at home. We both were not in a good state of mind. I have taken the car away to a Friends place, while wife decided to visit Luton Mall with my son so would have an peace of mind. We usually go to Luton from Leagrave by our Car, but as I was away, she thought to take train (FCC is the TOC in this case). When approached Leagrave station, she didnt spot anyone in counter and the train was already due, so we have rushed to the train, as I already had my monthly seasons travel card. She never realised its incorrect to use my travel card, until She and my son (4 yrs) was stopped by the RPO officer in Luton Station. She is not used to monthly seasons ticket and its terms and conditions, as She works locally in Luton in Hospital. Only I commute to London for work. Also whenever we travel to Luton or London, we used to go by Car. So she never realised the mistake of use of travel card, until she was stopped and told so RPO. Then he interviewed her, taken details, address etc and cautioned her, explaining that we'll receive the letter for prosecution in 2 weeks time. It was completely an error in judgement, she completely understand the mistake now, as well the loss of revenue to FCC. She never intended to evade tickets, but its lack of understading of the rules and regulations of my seasons ticket. She called me only when she has got held and signed-off forms with RPO. We certainly have some lessons learnt. Apart of loss of 15 days worth of travel card confisticated (which is worth £230), we are also worried on the prosecution or any other criminal records this would cause. My wife is in medical profession and will signigicantly impact on her career. We both are very worried for the past week for this unfornuate sitation. We are happy to compensate all loss of revenue and any adminstrative cost in this regard for FCC and sure have our lessons learnt, behing first time. But I'm really loss of next steps here. Should we need to wait for the letter from Prosecution Section of FCC, or shall we proactively call them, explain this and seek out of court settlement. We wish to resolve the issue amicably without an criminal records. Kindly advise on how to proceed. Thank you again for your assistance. Answers she provided for the Questions in the Form : Do you have a valid ticket or authority to travel for your rail journey at this time : No Where did you commence your rail journey today : Leagrave Where are you travelling to by rail today : Luton Do you have the means now to pay for your rail journey today : Yes, got cash Was it your intention to avoid your rail fare today : Not really. Usualy I used to go to Luton to visit Luton Mall with my husband in car. Since my husband is away and I wanted to visit, I have taken rail. And no one in counter, in leagrave and I have just rushed to take the train.
  8. Aviva insurers are currently being looked at by their regulator the Financial Conduct Authority in relation to a breach of principle 2, which is a failure to conduct its business with due skill, care skill and diligence. Think twice before you insure with Aviva! There are plenty of competent insurers out there to choose instead.
  9. I'm new to posting here, so apologies if this is in the wrong place. I'm looking for some advice on removing a very old caution on our property by paying the claimed amount. A quick summary: Back in 1990 our business failed in the recession that was occurring at that time. We paid off everyone except our business landlord, and in December 1996 we were hit with a Judgement for Plaintiff in the amount of £4492 "for debt and interest to date of judgement", plus £50 costs, making a total of £4542. Previously, in 1992, the landlord placed a Caution on our property. We now are in the process of changing our mortgage, and the new lender won't complete the deal until the caution is removed. We applied via Land Registry for it to be removed, but the landlord has objected (first time we've heard anything of him since 1996). As I'm just about to retire, I'd like to get the matter settled quickly so that we can go ahead with the mortgage - which we're only taking out 'cos our old mortgage has just expired and we've been unsuccessfully trying to sell our house for the past year. I can take out a sensible rate bank loan for the money and pay off the landlord, but.... 1)The "Name and address for payment" on the Judgement is a solicitors who tell us the creditor has not been a client for over 15 years, and they hold no paperwork on the case. Are they still the people I should be dealing with, or should I go straight to the creditor? 2) As the debt is unsecured and is under £5000, can the creditor claim any interest? He'll certainly try! 3) Should I deal with this myself or employ a solicitor to handle it? I realise that my problem is minor compared to those of many of the people asking for help on this site, but I would appreciate any advice you can give Thanks Steve
  10. Greeting to everyone... I am currently looking for some advice regarding an upcoming interview under caution which my girlfriend has. She thinks he has overpaid in HB, she made a stupid mistake and she wants to come clean and admit everything she did and start paying back the money which she owes. However she has been advised not to communicate with the council by his solicitor. Will she be likely be arrested straight away for admitting her offences? and if so..how can stop end HB payments and rearrange to repay the overpayments? Thanks in advance.
  11. hiya. i have received a letter from the council saying i need to attend an interview under caution but it does not identify what it is for. i put a claim in for housing benefit in april about a previous address and didn't here anything about it for months. i moved out of that house in july back to my parents house which i informed them about. but now i have moved into a different house and put a new claim in they have sent me this letter for both this address and my previous one. hope this makes sense and i hope someone can help me. thanks in advance Christie
  12. Please dont judge, i honestly feel so sick, i cant sleep, and i cant eat. I need help asap. I have a partner, who doesnt live with me, due to the fact hes getting help for anger problems, and tbh we cant afford to live together. He stays on his mates sofa 3-4times a week and then at mine the rest. Obv he leaves for work and comes home when hes staying here. He pays £100 to my landlord for the extra hb doesnt cover, which helps alot else i would be in debt. He doesnt pay any other bills,apart from halfs on sky internet, which he uses when he stays. we have two children together, he has never "lived"with me, apart from when we lived at my mum n dads for a year, but he had his own room, and paid rent. I have a feeling i know who has "grassed" on me, a women we had a kind of thing with a year ago. OH ended up cheating on me with her. I finished, He realised what he did, so stopped it with her and came back to me. She was jealous, and said some very hurtful things, and did hurtful things. Anyway, heres the awkward bit. Were engaged. He proposed last year. weve set a date for July 13th, and have gave notice of the marriage. So i dont know if there going to believe were not living together, even though we have two children and are "getting married". Although the wedding is on hold until he sorts his anger out. He has until Jan. I feel sick everyday, I have postnatal depression, which is all time high, So feel like breakingdown all the time. Forgot to add, he did stay with me for a few weeks this year, As my depression got so bad that i couldnt even get out of bed. [my mum passed away two years ago]. WHAT evidence could they have on me? I know all his bills ect does get sent to the house. what am i going to do? i cant live without my own money, i feel sick and worried
  13. Looking for some advice I recieved a letter today inviting me to an interview under caution, stating that while i was in reciept of housing/council tax benefit they believe i had undeclared income. At first i couldnt think what this was because i have started at university this year and have declared this and my benefits have been adjusted accordingly. However I attended college last year and into this year, it was a stressful time for me as i had alot going on in my personal life also. I did not declare to council that i had this change in circumstance and was in reciept of a bursary however i did not think i had to do this as i had heard from a few college friends i only had to do this for advanced level courses such as degrees. Now after sitting on the internet all day on google i have got myself in such a panic, what if i have commited benefit fraud unknowingly. I have a two year old child and feel like my career may be at risk now. Any advice welcomed.
  14. Last year was not good for me; I was suffering from depression and had a serious alcohol problem. This made it hard for me to hold down a job for more than a week or two at a time. I was living in London and made a claim for JSA and housing benefit. I was granted both. But I missed signing on a few times and the jsa stopped but the housing benefit continued to be paid into my account. Having never claimed before I wasn't sure on how the two were connected or that it was my responsibility to notify the local council of my change in circumstances. I finally ran out of money and moved back up to Scotland to stay with my family, I left my belongings in the flat but someone else started paying rent for my room, a friend of the people I was living with, despite the fact he didn't move in to the flat until Feb this year. Between the end of Sept, when I moved back to Scotland, and now, I lived in a number of places including a hostel, friends' couches, as a lodger, as a sub-letter and am only now getting back on my feet. I stopped receiving the housing benefit at the start of Feb this year and a month or two later received a letter at my family home in Scotland asking me to attend an 'interview under caution' - due to the fact I was no longer living in the area and work commitments I was unable to make it to the first appointment and subsequently failed to agree upon a date that would be suitable. Meanwhile, I had given them an address in London that they could send my mail to and I received another letter from the local council stating the exact amount that I had been overpaid and I called the overpayments team and agreed to set up a direct debit to start paying it back - the total was around £1,800. I thought that starting the direct debit would be enough to settle the matter. However, last week I was contacted again about having to go in to the council office for an 'interview under caution'. I'm currently back in Scotland. What I'm basically asking for advice on is what my options are: do I need to go? What will happen if I don't? And have I already made an admittance of committing fraud by starting the direct debit? I just want to avoid court or getting into legal trouble. Any advice will be greatly appreciated.
  15. Right I'm being quite paranoid here and its mostly my own fault for being absent minded. Basically moved into flat in 2011 and partner moved in shortly aftwards getting her mail. I never changed from getting the singler person 25% discount but obvioulsy all her post etc comes here. I've had a letter about them doing a review so I rang them up and said they have amended it for this year but in a panic on the phone when he asked how long she'd been here I said just a few months. I'm now paranoid about an IUA and want to ring them up and say I got my dates wrong and pay the 2012 part and then continue paying the extra for this year - but I'm worried about that causing alarm vs saying nothing! I've got some legal advice who said not to worry too much and written the following At this stage, I probably would not be worried. You volunteered the information and therefore they are unlikely to pursue any criminal issue with regard to the previous wound payment unless what prompted you to bring this to their retention was something that they had done. If you are still concerned, simply ring them up and tell them when your partner moved in and tell them you want to pay back the discount, in proportion, for that period. They will send you an amended bill. It really is as simple as that. They will send you an amended bill and you will pay it. I think you probably have more chance of winning the lottery than being prosecuted for defrauding Council tax based upon what you have told me! I'm tempted to write them a letter and expalin ! any thoughts ???
  16. Hi, A decade ago my friend was trying to buy a flat but couldn't get a mortgage on her own. I offered to be the other name on a joint mortgage so that she could buy it. We got a joint mortgage. She put up the entire deposit for the flat, paid for everything when it was being done up etc. We lived there together at first but soon she moved elsewhere and rented it to me and other tenants. I claimed several years of housing and council tax benefit as a tenant and not as an owner when earning almost nothing at all. Our agreement had been that, as I was putting in no money, etc, I would not be a part owner. I have received an Interview Under Caution letter as the council "have information that suggests I may have been part owner of the property which was not declared when claiming the Housing/council tax benefit." What should I do? Will my name on the mortgage mean that I'm f**ked even though neither of us view it as my property? Help. I'm very frightened.
  17. hi In need of some help/advise . I recieved a letter this morning asking my partner to attend an Interview under caution regarding a failure to notify a change in our household . It doesnt elabirate thats all it says .... . I have contacted housing benefit to check the details they hold on us are correct , which they are so still none the wiser . The only thing we can think of is my partner was in a car accident at the end of feb and the insurance paid out just over £5000 to replace the car . Not sure if this would have any affect ....also I have been doing flower arrangements for friends and family at cost (I have not gained) but have had them on a facebook page building a portfoilio for when i do go back to work when my youngest starts nursery . If it is this any advise on how I prove I have not made any income would be appreciated and how best to get prepared for the interview. In fact any advise would be greatfully recieved , I am so worried !!
  18. I received a letter confirming that i have to attend the interview and advising that interview will be take place under caution (which I don't know what it means) also letter stated that ` we have arranged this interview because we believe there are grounds for suspecting that a criminal offence may have been committed ` The issue started back in July 2012 where some one claimed Social Funds using my name and details. Since then I have been in contact and I have provided them with all identification to proof that its not me. They sent me copy of the applications completed and they all had different signatures which of course did not match my signature. So finally around Feb 2013 they stated that they will stop chasing me as they believe it was not me . At that time of this ordeal i was on JSA and they were deducting money from my allowance which eventually they repaid me when they withdraw their case and i started my full-time job on 3rd of June with DWP. I am really nervous never been in such situation before as I have always been good with my credit history, Can anyone advise on what will happen on the day of the interview and what should I expect
  19. Hi, I received a letter from HB/CTB to say I had to attend an interview under caution. I rang and spoke to the person who sent the letter and he said it is because they think I have someone living with me. So here it is, my ex partner, also my best friend (we have known each other for 15 years) we are very close I won't deny it and I love him to pieces but we are not in love if you see my meaning. We have children together, he is here every day almost, stays over a lot (never in the same bed) always in the boys bottom bunk, more so when I am down (suffer from depression) to do things with the kids , get youngest dressed etc. he doesn't work or claim benefits, he gets money from family, and doesn't give me anything towards the children or household bills, he doesn't have clothes here, or have his washing done here, I don't cook for him. He is here for his children and although he can't give any money he supports them emotionally which is fantastic for them. I have worked all my life and only been claiming benefit for 6 months (claimed HB/CTB before) but not income support until 6 months ago. He has some mail coming here such as his bank statements and his driving licence which I needed the bank statements for proof for legal aid as I had transferred some money int his bank previously when I lost my debit card and they asked me why and to show proof which I did. I should also mention that he is on trial and is bailed to my address no conditions to stay here or anything but they do come and check on him. We share a car which is in my name but he legally owns it and we are insured on the same policy. Anyway back to my original post I have had the letter for the interview, we don't live as a couple, we don't have a sexual relationship, he doesn't live here but he stays more than he probably should. Reading my own post it looks bad but I honestly didn't think I had done anything wrong, as i am single and my things in my home are mine and my bills are paid by me. What do i do? I have no intention of lying as clearly I didn't think i was wrong, I have never ever done anything wrong or committed fraud but I am worried about how it looks on paper. Do I need to get legal advice? Should i just go my own and just tell them the above? Will they make it look terrible and be really awful to me? I have just got my daughter into nursery (starts next week) and I have been applying for jobs for the last few months as it was always my plan to go full time when my youngest starts nursery, which will be full time employment and I will not need to claim then as hopefully I will be on my feet. Help please! Thank you.
  20. Hello everyone, I received a letter yesterday asking me to attend an interview under caution, because my local authority suspects I have been committing benefit fraud. This is quite complicated, so please bear with me: I lived in Wales until April last year, at which time I had to move to England to take care of my daughter full time (her mother is an alcoholic and mentally unstable , and was incapable of looking after her any longer.) I wasn't working at the time (claiming JSA), so all benefits were transferred over to me (HB, Child Benefit, Child Tax Credit). In September, my girlfriend (we'll call her "C") also moved to the same town as me, having got a job in the area. However, the job only paid around £250 pcm, so she decided to stay with her sister (we'll call her "K") because she couldn't contribute half of the £1000 (approx) monthly outgoings of my household. Here's where it gets complicated. Although C was living with K, she was using my address as a postal address due to previous mail theft at K's residence. I knew this was a bad idea, but C didn't have much choice. C has also been staying at my house quite regularly, but not contributing to the household income (provable with my bank statements). This arrangement continued, without incident, until February this year, when I got a part-time job working from home. Upon getting the job, I immediately signed off JSA, and my benefits were adjusted according to my new income. Around a month ago, I received a letter from HMRC, asking why I was claiming Tax Credits as a single person when they have information which suggests that C was living with me. I called them to explain the situation, and offered to send them bank statements, utility bills, tenancy agreement etc to show that everything was in my name, and that C was not contributing to the household income. The man I spoke to said this was fine - I just needed to show I wasn't in any way financially dependent on C. I was about to send all these documents off to HMRC when I received a letter from my council, asking me to attend an interview under caution because they suspected I had been committing benefit fraud. I immediately phoned them (presuming this letter was a result of the HMRC investigation), and explained the situation as calmly as I could, and told them that I was already dealing with it. They then informed me that it was the DWP who had approached them (as a result of an allegation made to the DWP from an unknown source), and that the fraud investigation was tied to JSA claim, as opposed to Tax Credits. As I said, I stopped claiming JSA in February, so I'm baffled as to why that's an issue now. The interview is next week, and while I've got all my documents ready, everything I've read about these interviews has said I should not attend alone. However, I don't qualify for legal aid and can't get hold of anyone at my local CAB. Should I just go alone anyway, and just try to stay calm? Should I be worried that there's no documentation that proves that C lives with K? They have an informal arrangement, although K is willing to state that C is staying with her at the moment. Is it likely that the interviewer will accept what I have to say, considering I have a year's worth of bank statements here which show I have been paying all bills, rent etc? There is one provable instance of C helping with money in that entire time - I borrowed £200 from her in January to cover my overspending at Xmas. I'm obviously pretty concerned about this, and have never had to deal with anything like it, so some feedback would be much appreciated.
  21. I have a confession to make: I regularly get onto a train and buy a ticket on the train - I am told that this isn't allowed, but it doesn't ever to seem to have caused a problem before (I think this is one reason people get confused about the byelaws). I buy a ticket, all is usually ok! Today, I asked for a return ticket and the conductor told me that his machine was broken so he couldn't sell me one. I had the cash in my hand to give him, so I clearly intended to pay. It never occurred to buy a ticket on the way out as I was running late! I wish it had though, was stopped and cautioned by a Revenue Protection Officer (which made me even later!). I know you can't predict these things, but what is likely to happen next? Would they prosecute for an £8 fare that I tried to pay?
  22. Hi - I'd be really grateful for some advice. On Saturday I received a letter from the council to attend an IUC on 13th May regarding allegations of a fraudulent benefit claim. I'm a single mum in a rented house. I work full time, low wage, receive HB and CTR, and also WTC and CTC. I am married, but legally separated from Sept 2011 and began divorce proceedings in April 2012. I have a marital home (no equity) and a mortgage, my husband lived in that and pays the mortgage as I moved out when it became too difficult to live with him. I have a boyfriend who I met in July 2012. He stays over often, but lives with his Auntie. He is also separated and mid-divorce. He has a marital home and pays a mortgage and his wife and child live there. He moved out a couple of years ago, lives with his auntie, pays her food money etc, and also tops up her CT as she lost the 25% single occupancy discount when he moved in. All his mail etc goes to his home at his auntie's. We have no joint financial dealings at all, he just stays over and goes, my bills are my own, in my name and paid by me. He's great and we spend a lot of time together, but neither of us want to move in together, when financially and emotionally we are both in a big enough mess already with divorces, mortgages etc. My husband is being very difficult, won't sign divorce papers or disclose info about his pension etc. I am divorcing him for unreasonable behaviour. Last week his solicitor told mine that he wants to divorce me for adultery even though I didn't meet my boyfriend until after we split up. He has also accused me, in a solicitors letter, of living with my boyfriend. He is angry at my new relationship and causing trouble whenever he can. When I received this IUC letter my immediate thought was that my husband has tried to report me for fraud, saying that me boyfriend lives here or something. However, having googled and panicked all weekend, I now have another thought. WTC messed up my income and were underpaying me. When I applied for HB I submitted evidence, a copy of the WTC letter etc. WTC then rectified their mistake and my WTC went up to pay me back for the underpayment, some of which pre-dated my HB claim. I then got a letter from HB in Feb 2013 saying that there had been an overpayment of just over £1000 because of this. I appealed saying that firstly I gave them my WTC letter and everything correctly when I applied and WTCs constant mistakes are not my fault, and secondly that the Feb letter said that WTC had notified them of the change in Sept 2012, so I asked why they had taken 6 months to deal with it, letting an overpayment accrue in the meantime. All I have had since are a series of confusing award letters that are 20+ pages long from which I gather that they are recovering the HB part (£700) of the O/P from my benefit. The CT O/P of £300 was taken my DD from my bank at the time. Having googled all weekend trying to work out what's going on, thinking it must be an accusation by my husband, I have now established that HB might be considering the above O/P as fraudulent on the basis that I didn't provide info of my WTC increase?? It wasn't deliberate, they knew I got WTC, and WTC told them of the change. I'm self-employed so understanding how it's all worked out is a nightmare. The WTC and HB letters are dozens of pages long and computer generated so that there's no proper letter of explanation, you just have to interpret the amounts as best you can! I thought WTC were repaying me money from before my HB claim, it's so complicated. All I can think to do is ring the CAB... I have now been on hold for 56 mins! Any advice would be gratefully received, I'm worried sick. Thanks
  23. Hi, I’m new here and would really appreciate some help. I’ve read through many posts dealing with similar scenarios to the one I’m experiencing right now, but to be honest, they’re giving me even more to worry about. Two weeks ago I received a letter from my LA asking me to attend an Interview Under Caution. I have been claiming housing and council tax benefits for the last 3 years and cancelled my claim recently. Within 3 days I received the IUC letter. I have sought advice from a solicitor specialising in this sort of thing and he will attend the rescheduled interview with me in a couple of weeks. However, I have a few questions I wanted to put out to this forum – all contributions welcome, thanks. My solicitor told me that the investigators have probably already seen my bank statements, and herein lies a problem. Over the past 3 years there are quite a few transactions on my accounts that are not mine. I have a business partner whom I have allowed to use my main account when they did not have their own bank account. Monies have entered and left the accounts, but not all are mine. How do I prove to the LA that they aren’t mine? I was the sole claimant. Have the LA the right to interview my business partner under caution too, even though they have not made a claim for any benefits whatsoever? They had no knowledge of my claim and now I’ve told them what’s happened they’re scared of messing up in case it makes my case look worse. I didn’t declare this other activity to HB as I knew it wasn’t mine and what’s it got to do with my claim anyway? Sorry, but I think I’ve been a bit naive here. Is naivete a defence? Will my business partner be investigated/open to scrutiny too? My home is also the business address, and although my business partner doesn’t live here, they have spent some nights a week stopping over when we’ve been working. We are not co-habiting, our relationship is strictly business and friendship. Neither do we have any financial links, other than the bank account transactions. I’m worried that the LA will try to put them in the property, which would affect my claim as a single occupant. HB knew I was self employed when I made the initial claim, so it’s not as if I’ve had a business without their knowledge, but they haven’t been made aware of changes in circumstances over time, especially over the last 12 months. I realise I’ve been stupid, but I need to present a defence that doesn’t implicate anyone else, but at the same time I do need my business partner to back me up. I wish I could handle this myself, but without my business partner my case looks a whole lot worse. Also, I do have a history of stress/anxiety/depression issues and was retired from my profession on the grounds of ill health several years ago. I’ve already made an appointment with my GP because my mental state has been shot to sh*t since that letter landed a couple of weeks ago. I’m having difficulty functioning at the moment, sick with worry and cannot sleep properly. My business partner is scared that our names are going to be splashed all over the local paper and we won’t be able to hold our heads up when the sh*t hits the fan. We’re both scared witless and would appreciate some input. Many thanks
  24. Hi All I would like to ask for some advice but would like to first hold back information which could lead to me being readily identified. I've spent the past few hours searching and reading through this forum, but I can't see any threads from someone similar to me, which leads me to fear that I could be facing a substantial fine/jail time/lord knows what. I was caught using a relatives photo oyster card (a retired pass). At the time I had my details taken by the ticket inspector, but at no point did he mention that I was being interviewed under caution. He asked me 5 basic questions (Did I intend to avoid paying my fare today? etc), and I answered all of them honestly. Reading through the forum it seems as though I was interviewed under caution (although he did not mention the word caution), and I had to sign and date the form he completed. I have now received a letter asking me to contact the revenue control inspector so that I can have an interview under caution in relation to this matter. Is this because the initial inspector did not mention I was under caution? Or is this because they want to gather as much information as possible before taking me to criminal court? Most other people are given the option of sending a letter apologising, but I have to be interviewed. Note - I haven't phoned the inspector yet to arrange my availability for an interview.
  25. A number of years ago, I got off a train and walked to an extended platform to get a second train to my final destination, I saw I had just missed the second train so decided to walk instead, I went to a fast food place within the station to get some breakfast and then walked out of the station. As I left the station, a BTP officer approached me and asked to see my ticket, of which I did not have one. As such, he said I could either receive a caution or be summoned to court prosecuted for trying to defraud the railway services (or something like that). A couple of days later, I had to sign a simple caution for the offence of Railway Byelaw 18 Ticketless Travel at the BTP station for traveling without first buying a ticket, not buying one on the train (even though there was no conductor), and then avoiding the ticket check barrier (which I dispute as it wasn't intentional). What I'd like to know is, will this ever show up on an enhanced CRB check? Bearing in mind I have actually had 3 enhanced CRB checks since then and have always had "None Recorded" under all categories and am employed to work with children now...
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