Interview Under Caution at JCP - advice wanted

[FitzWilliam]

There's a simple reason why I didn't declare the bank accounts of the trust: the money in them isn't mine. I no more own the money than the Chancellor of the Exchequer owns the money in the Treasury. I've always declared my own money.

 

The HMRC tax returns all have the name of trust on them as well as my full name and address. I am left to wonder why a HMRC 'computer match' to the accounts with my name and address on them could not also match the HMRC tax returns which also have my name and address on them. That's all computerised as well; in fact, we have made the tax returns online.

 

The fact is, I have no idea how these FIS people go about their research. All I can say is that they acquired partial evidence that gave them a misleading picture of events. They got some information from HMRC computers that aroused their suspicions that the account money was personally mine, but not other information also on HMRC computers that clearly indicates it belongs to a will trust.

 

Now I'm just guessing here - I can't claim expertise - but it looks like these 'computer matches' to HMRC records are a new thing that the FIS people are doing. If so, then they are probably coming up against lots of new and unexpected situations such as people who are trustees of accounts (i.e. don't own the money in them). The main investigator happened to mention another case where someone had said he was a trustee, and I will guess that lots of other trustees are getting needlessly called to these IUC's.

 

Well, there we are. They investigated me after getting records from HMRC computers and I'm defending myself by sending them other information also on HMRC computers.

Edited February 11, 2011 by FitzWilliam

[FitzWilliam]

I am vindicated 8)

 

This sorry tale has finally reached its conclusion. I have received a letter that reads as follows:

 

Having considered all the facts of your case a decision had been taken not to institute criminal proceedings against you and the investigation is now closed.

 

All that effort to make a case against me to no avail.

 

The letter is dated 1 April 2011. Yes, and it was a big joke long before April Fools' Day.

 

This is all part of the bigger scandal of incompetence and waste in the DWP. A whole load of public money was squandered on this pointless investigation.

 

The East Hampshire District Council investigated the same matter much more reasonably last year. They rightly gave it a low priority and visited me informally to talk about it. The DWP, however, spent weeks investigating before even talking to me, writing to banks and gathering account details to make a half-baked case against me.

 

The DWP didn't even know that the EHDC had already investigated, only learning about it because I phoned the EHDC who then got in touch with the DWP. So two public bodies were needlessly duplicating work in investigating me.

 

While public money was wasted on this heavy-handed and time-consuming investigation other more needy people were having their DLA and ESA removed.

 

Since January 2008, I have faced an amazing total of eight accusations of criminality, all of them from people working for the DWP. My police record remains clean with no charges, cautions or warnings against me, and no action following this latest FIS investigation.

 

I wonder if anyone other jobseeker can claim such a high number of criminal accusations against him while maintaining an unblemished record. I suspect I may hold the UK record.

[JrnyFan4Life]

Glad to see you finally put this saga behind you. I'm not sure whether it's just me, but I've seen a steady rise in the number of people suddenly being investigated for benefit fraud. Wonder if it coincides with those people getting sanctioned left right and centre.

[Life-Goes-On]

Fitz- Good news, glad it's over for you.

 

I'm not sure whether it's just me, but I've seen a steady rise in the number of people suddenly being investigated for benefit fraud.

It's not just you, I said the same a few weeks ago.

[honeybee13]

Well done Fitz, I'm really pleased for you and hope your life moves into a much better phase now.

 

You know where we are .

 

My best for the future, HB

[FitzWilliam]

Thanks everyone.

 

I'm not sure whether it's just me, but I've seen a steady rise in the number of people suddenly being investigated for benefit fraud.

 

I suspect that the introduction of the 'computer matches' with HMRC records is partly responsible for the rise in the number of investigations by the FIS. No doubt a few genuine fraudsters are being caught out that way.

 

But innovations like this also bring into play the law of unintended consequences, and the failure of the DWP to recognise that some jobseekers are also trustees with bank accounts that hold other people's money seems to be one of them.

 

If the DWP had handled this more informally - as the EHDC did - they would not have wasted so much time and public money. The heavy hand of bureaucracy was all over this investigation.

[ErikaPNP]

It'll be the NFI that's carried out every two years. There's always a rise when they do an audit.