Benefit Fraud Interview Under Caution - worried sick

[Damsel-in-Distress]

Well folks, it's the day before my IUC and I am having to 'brave face it' at work in my temping job but shaking like a leaf underneath it all.

 

I saw the solicitor last week and presented him with a huge dossier of info which proves how hard I have worked to find a job and seek help with my situation. I became incredibly tearful in telling my story, but he seemed quite reassuring and advised that he feels I will incurr a caution and, naturally, have to repay every penny. Let's hope he's right and that nothing worse happens.

 

Despite my medication starting to kick in a 'prop me up' if you like, I'm growing increasingly panicky and fearful because I have worked tirelessly on my dossier and am STILL having to chase all and sundry for assistance:

• The solicitor said a doctor's letter might help my case, so I wrote to the doctor that same day asking for this and clearly stating that I would need the letter by today. I hand-delivered my letter to the surgery and so far have had to chase three times. The letter is finally awaiting the doctor's signature, apparently, so I'm still awaiting the call saying I can go collect it.
  
• I spent an intense weekend updating my dossier and it's now 175 pages - all showing proof of how I've asked so many organisations for their advice and assistance ... and then chased and chased for responses. I emailed this to the solicitor and asked him to acknowledge receipt and let me know the name of the person who would be attending my IUC with me tomorrow. At this time, I have now chased that twice by email and once by phone but am still to receive the response I have so urgently requested. (I'm now wondering if I'm in the best hands for representation tomorrow...?)
  

In short and without going into tons more boring detail, I have had and continue to have to chase every single person who has been contacted about this matter. I'm left wondering if anyone out there actually does their job properly any more...? Instead of feeling supported by the so-called professionals, I am left feeling very alone and extremely frightened.

 

I'm very grateful for the support of everyone who's posted a reply on here - heartfelt thanks to you all. I will let you know how it went when I return from my IUC tomorrow ... probably after a sleep as that's all I want to do right now!

 

Bright blessings to you all.

 

xXx

[loopinlouie]

Best wishes and good luck for tommorow xx

[mrspinkpaws]

Good luck for tomorrow. I'll be thinking of you and sending positive vibes. Do try to get some sleep tonight, so you will be fresh and alert.

This time tomorrow It'll all be over

[tabs666]

Hi tabs 666

do you find the job frustating or do you have the budget and manpower, is fraud a hotspot now,

 

 

Well, we are understaffed, but things level out: If we had more people, we'd do more investigations. But on the whole I love my job and take the frustrations on the chin (s).

[honeybee13]

Hi Damsel. I'll be crossing my fingers for you tomorrow. Just be yourself.

 

Sweet dreams, HB x

[RaeUK]

Hi Damsel, you have my best wishes also. I really hope things go well for you and you can put the dark days behind you.

Much love.

Rae x

[Rachie1973]

Good luck xxx will be thinking of you xxx

[Averyworriedmumof3]

Good luck for tomorrow. xxx

[Damsel-in-Distress]

Thank you SO much everyone.

Off to bed already as I've a thumping headache, so here's hoping for some rest.

Goodnight and Godbless one and all xXx

[WelshMam2009]

Best of luck Damsel...you'll get through this hun!!

[MIKEY DABODEE]

good luck, hope it all goes well :}

[ErikaPNP]

How did you get on today, Damsel?

[blondeee]

Just registered today so have just read all the posts and replies referring to damsel....waiting with baited breath on her outcome...I myself had a fraud investigation interview today and like the damsel turned up a quivering wreck ...and really had no clue what it was about only that it was with reference to my carers allowance ...Im a 47 year old single parent with four kids three girls all of whom have left home and are in the forces and 1 son...ive worked all my life and claimed tax credits child benefit etc but never claimed anything else until my 10year old son was diagnosed with autism at 2 when i started claiming dla and carers allowance ...left my managerial position in 2008 with the stress of my job and was in pretty bad shape for a while but never claimed relief until i started working part time within a couple of weeks of leaving my full time job and then started claiming housing benefit and council tax relief ...which i was very grateful of with having a big drop in my standard of living...the interview was because i had changed jobs twice since first claiming carers allowance once within the same company and then my part time job cant understand why where or when there was a fraud or offence committed but they want all my wage record from 2006 and child care costs .....they say i should have updated my records yearly but if they have had no updates each year why did they give me it for the last four years why didnt they stop the allowance because i had no clue i was doinganything wrong i thought tax credits and inland revenue carers allowance etc all came under the same umbrella ...will i be prosecuted im worried sick

help

[condaleeza]

No worries mate.

 

Also, criminal solicitors are great at their jobs. However, they often haven't got a clue how the benefit system works. They will ensure PACE is adhered to etc, but it is often not their area of expertise. An interviews on tape for everyones benefit, it means that everything said is available verbatim.

 

If you attend one of these interviews and the tape is switched on, the people there give their names, you give yours etc. should you then not be asked if you object to the interview being taped? should you not be given the right to refuse the taped interview and have them write it down instead? That is what it states in the leaflet they send you. if they refuse to offer you that option, does that invalidate the tape? legally I believe it does.

[Shoelover]

Condaleezer. An investigator can't force anyone to stay and be taped- hence the caution given by fraud investigators goes onto say "You are not under arrest... You may leave". I don't know why anyone would want a written interview they take more than twice as long and also there is not a sealed record of excatly what has been said.

I'm pretty sure there is still a right to ask for the interview to be handwritten.

[tabs666]

I always explain that the interview is being taped for everyone concerneds benefit. If it's taped, then a true and complete record of everything thats said is available. This way the person I am interviewing is not relying on my interpretation,nor can there be any omissions or additions. Object to the interview, refuse it if necessary, but it makes no sense at all to go and refuse to be taped. Typing up a taped interview takes hours, imagine writing it as you go along?

[RaeUK]

Many, many years ago when I was involved with interviewing people under caution, interviews were hand written. A real pain in the proverbials - particularly in a long interview!

Best wishes

Rae.

[Damsel-in-Distress]

Dear All

Firstly, I'm SO sorry that I haven't posted since my IUC but firstly, I put it all behind me as though it was all over forever and then I was struck down by the most horrendous flu virus, from which I'll still at home recovering as I write.

The IUC was pretty much as I expected. I'd researched it, heeded all your good advice, and had a fairly good idea of what to expect. I'd spent hour upon hour preparing a huge dossier which comprised character reference letters from my parents and friends; my own statement as to the events leading to my feeling forced into temping whilst claiming; all my jobsearch evidence (well over 700 jobs applied for!); all of my written/emailed requests for help and advice from various organisations (Jobcentre Plus, CAB, Shelter, TV shows etc etc) as well as full details of the work I'd done and payslips received whilst claiming. I'd given my solicitor a hard copy of the dossier and emailed him an update the day before the IUC. (I hadn't been very impressed with my so-called solicitor at all, because I'd had to chase and chase for a response to anything so I began to wonder whether I should have gone elsewhere.)

On the day, I felt sick with nerves but knew that I'd done everything I could to explain my case. I dressed smartly, and arrived in good time to meet my solicitor's representative. To my horror, she had not been briefed AT ALL about my case, let alone been handed the dossier I'd worked so hard on. I was bloody furious, really upset, went to pieces and became very tearful. She was very apologetic but quickly scanned through my dossier and asked relevant questions, so, luckily for me, she was a smart lady and quickly got hold of the salient points.

My lawyer went in to see the investigators first and then came out to tell me that they only knew about a short spell of my working whilst claiming. However, I was adamant that I wanted to hand over all the evidence that I'd prepared and admit to 19 weeks of working/claiming in total, not just the 6-7 weeks that they knew about. I just hope that my honesty will go in my favour as much as possible.

The taped IUC itself was fairly quick and concise and, although I was sobbing (much to my annoyance - I couldn't help myself) I explained that I had done everything in my power to seek extra help and advice before being forced into a law-breaking situation.

The investigators were as nice as they could possibly be within the confines of their permitted behaviours and they suggested I forward to them my actual timesheets rather than just payslips. This is because there might be some days that can be excluded if I didn't work, took time out to attend interviews etc.

I was advised that it could take weeks/months before I hear anything and I asked if they could do their utmost to let me know asap, explaining that it's hell living in limbo.

Afterwards, I returned home and was utterly exhausted, so slept for most of the day. The next day, I returned to my temping job feeling bizarrely elated as though it was all over. It is not, of course, as I now await the outcome.

Shortly after that I was floored by a virus which has made me feel more ill than I can ever remember feeling before. Sadly, it's forced me to take time off work and, as a temp, I won't be paid, so that will only exacerbate my already dire financial situation. I feel too ill to even worry about it right now, but I know it'll all catch up with me.

This is the first day for ages that I've bothered to turn my PC on, hence being so delayed in posting. I still haven't submitted my timesheets to the investigators but hope to feel well enough to do so within the next day or so, with apologies for the delay.

So now we wait! I pray for a sensible outcome and hope I'm not 'crushed' further when hear any news.

Again, my heartfelt thanks to you all for your good wishes, great advice and friendly support. Also, the best of luck to anyone awaiting an IUC or the outcome of one.

My personal statement within my dossier ended with this:

I would like to end with two points:

1. The DWP currently run an advertising campaign which proudly announces “Last year, we caught 56,493 benefit thieves”. Undoubtedly some of these people will have had criminal intentions and be driven by greed, but statistically this is likely to be a small percentage. Surely, what this actually highlights is the fact that the benefits system does not support people as it should. At least two television series have recently proven the fact that people are unable to survive on benefits. The majority of people are not greedy or evil, just desperate to survive in a system that prevents them from doing so.

2. I did not want to cheat the system – but I could not risk losing my house as I do not have other options for accommodation. I still await an answer to the question that I have been asking all the way through this stressful time:

“what could I have legally done to bridge the large gap between benefits and what I absolutely had to pay monthly, just to keep the roof over my head”?

Bright blessings to you all. xXx