Tax Credit Letter- Life Over

[kizzy1972]

HI i'm hoping someone can give me a glimmer of hope as i feel like my world is crashing round my feet as i type.

 

I have 3 kids and had a stormy relationship with their dad over 10 years, we have broke up many times. Anyway we decided it was this time or never and he moved back in 3 weeks ago. he done a credit check online to see how his finances were and 4 days later i get a letter saying i am under review as they have evidence aother person has been living at my address.

We do not have a joint bank account but do have a joint mortgage which he pays, basically all his mail comes here as it helped in me getting a mortgage, i have no proof he was not here at any of the time over the years.

 

I havent slept in 4 days nor have i ate and i am banging off the walls with worry. I went to CAB and they said to be honest, i went to a fraud solicitor with my Dad and they advised to say nothing, wait for the letter saying how much they say i owe, if i get called for aninterview to say "no comment" and the worst part, she said 3 times that Prison is a real possibility-i cannot believe how stupid i have been, how can i leave my little ones, or explain to them why. My life is over and i cant see a way out. Thaybwont believe he wasnt here as i have no proof and his mail came here. he is great with the kids and a good father we just couldnt get on, although we really had a chance this time as he has changed-this is ruining that too.

 

Anyone any help, advice or similar stories

 

Just been to doctor to get sleeping tablets, the stress and worry is ruining me

[Gbarbm]

Ok, take a deep breath and calm down.

I'm going to ask you some questions which will give me a clearer picture

 

Were you married to the childrens dad?

Regarding the mortgage, whose name is on the deeds?

Have you ever been to court regarding custody/access arrangements regarding the children

Prior to returning to the property was your childrens father living with relatives/rented accommodation?

[kizzy1972]

Yes we are still married and both our names are on the deeds, it is a joint mortgage which comes out of his own bank account.

We havent had any official access arrangements as we have been getting on ok. He stayed with his Mum who passed away around 3 years ago. He has no official address with no paperwork for any of it. Basically by credit cards,mortgage,loans, even his work and tax have came here-it just seemed easier. As we've been in and out of each others lives and he is in constant contact with me and the kids.

 

I've been so bloody stupid and dont know what to do

[kizzy1972]

The letter states the year 2011-2012 we belive this person has been living at your property, we work closely with credit reference agencies.

 

God i'm planning on sellig my house and moving in with my dad to pay this off, i'm worried they go right back 10 years...

[Gbarbm]

If a married couple are informally separated, it is possible that they can "maintain separate households under the same roof" on the grounds that it is "in the best interests of the children"

There would be an expectation that finances would also be separated although that may not always be the case.

I note you say that he was staying at his mums... Can he prove this?

 

The best thing to do would be to be truthful and respond to the compliance check letter you have received.

 

So what is the worst that could happen? Well I doubt you'll be sent to prison, you will probably have to pay back any overpayment which is usually recovered from a subsequent award.

[kizzy1972]

Thank-you for your help.

His mum sadly passed away and there is no paperwork around from that time. Basically although for most of the the past 10 years i have been alone i have claimed Working Family tax credits as a single person. He has came back at various times for very short periods for which i did not change my claim which i should have done.

 

We were really getting on and going to declare eveything hence the credit check, this has turned everything upside down and i am a mess and i really dont know what to think.

 

I will in some way pay back what i owe but the stress is killing me, the farud Solicitor told me not to contact them, although i did leave a voicemail with my details on it.

 

If they go back almost 10 years and hold me liable it could be thousands and thousands

[Gbarbm]

The thing is the longer you put off contacting them the worse it will be.

Just write to them as I suggested earlier and see what their response is. Once you receive a reply and post back here if you need further advice

[kizzy1972]

The stress is such a nightmare with this, it is so hard to concentrate on anything other than the worst case scenario.

 

My main worry is that they hold me accountable for the full ten years which will ruin me and of course the threat of prison that i cannot get out of my head...

[kizzy1972]

I had to contact them by 2nd May i have phoned and left my details on the answer machine so at least they know i have contacted. I do not think they will believe me that he has been in and out of our lives, the strange thing is that now i am blaming him for this again which i pulling us apart again. He has proved he's changed but i cannot help but blame him again... need to get it together arghhhhhh!

 

Just need to wait on the letter saying for what period and how much they want.... waiting is making me sick!

[Gbarbm]

It is human nature to always think the worst.

I know it is easy for me to say, but I honestly think that once you deal with this with HMRC you will begin to feel better.

There appears to be no question of you deliberately attempting to get more tax credits than you should; it is after all quite normal in this day and age with the difficulties in paying for rent and mortgages to maintain separate households under the same roof.

One partner may well continue paying the mortgage even if they don't live in the property in lieu of maintainence payments for the children.

I note you have separate bank accounts so this does show that your finances were separated.

[susi72]

The thing that is what they are most concerned with isn't just where he has been living.

 

It's how you are financially tied. Besides a mortgage (and even then they would expect this to be rectified in time) they do not want any financial links between you and your partner if you want to claim as a single person. This means anything he is paying from that address - insurance, loans, any credit or any of your other bills is a complete no-no.

 

As soon as you can get through to the Officer on your case, see what they are looking for and answer as honestly as possile. It is only when claimants try to hide information that they will consider taking action down a non civil route. But this is what they want to do, they do not want to have to take people to court or issue further penalties, they just want people to b honest with them.

[lis79]

Hi suzi72,

 

Is it true that tax credits will open up the previous tax years (not just 2010-2011, 2011-12) at a later date. Will these then be investigated by the 'single fraud investigation service' (starting in April 2013) and lead to more cases via the non-civil route?

[susi72]

Hi suzi72,

 

Is it true that tax credits will open up the previous tax years (not just 2010-2011, 2011-12) at a later date. Will these then be investigated by the 'single fraud investigation service' (starting in April 2013) and lead to more cases via the non-civil route?

 

 

As far as I can tell at the moment Lis, when it comes to the compliance checks they are looking at the years stated usually but it seems to be when people become difficult during investigations for example trying to hide or deny stuff when HMRC or DWP have proof that they open up the previous years.

 

It seems they want people to start claiming properly, so if there is a partner who contributes then he should be on the claim and so a joint claim is then made and any overpayment from the single one paid back.

 

I do know though there is going to be a system brought in where investigators are checked to see how many prosecutions they have made through cases. They also want to increase the monies paid back but how it will pan out, i'm not exactly sure yet.

 

Anything from April 2013 as far as I know will be dealing with fraud pertaining to the new systems being brought in but they will have the power to open up previous years. I do know they plan to get really, really tough next year, so it would not surprise me if they opened up previous years, but I do think this will be for people being investigated after April 2013. Those who have changed their claims to joint ones and are repaying overpayments already, I think they might be ok, I am only speculating though but i'd imagine this would be the case.

Edited April 28, 2012 by susi72
Grammar tsk tsk

[kizzy1972]

HI Suzy72, I have phoned but i cannot get through. I left a voicemail with all my details on and it said they would be in touch. I had to contact by the 2nd of May which by leaving the voicemail i have done.

I'm thinking in their eyes they will say we have been together as we have been financially linked over the years so there is no point fighting it, i just want to know where is stand and how much they want back so i can get on with my life.

 

While i wait on their letter should i change my claim now to a joint claim?

As he has been living here since the start of the year. As its been so rocky i stupidly wanted to see how we got on for a month or two. We decided things had changed and we were getting our joint finances sorted hence why he done a credit check, then this letter came and my world has fell apart...

[susi72]

They won't allow you to over the helpline because if your single claim is being investigated, then the advisors on the helpline cannot touch those claims or make any ammendments, they will usually advise you that your claim is being dealt with by a 'Specialist Team'. Same with claims being dealt with by Complaints, Appeals teams etc.

 

If you have left your details and still don't feel completely reassured, try again but not on a Monday. This is the busiest day for all benefits related departments. Try the number on your letter again perhaps on the Tuesday around 10-11 if possible or later.

 

To be honest Kizzy, even had he not been there at the start of the year and you giving it a go, it would have been picked up in the checks because he still would have been financially linked before that, so try not to see you both trying again so recently as the causitive issue. This can only lead to resentment or problems between you, when it would have been looked at long before this to be selected for review.

[lis79]

Thanks v much for replying suzi72

 

Is it an option to pay back a previous tax year (i.e. 2009-2010) even though they are not asking about it in a review? i.e. for the reason that, the circumstances for that year are no different - when compared to later years you've had to pay back)

 

If you volunteered to pay it back, would you just get a repayment notice, or would they fully investigate it and ask you to send stuff in?

 

Do you think that offering to pay it back (just for peace of mind) is as good as admitting fraud... even if it was a mistake? ?In their eyes, are you likely to look more guilty? which might lead to further action.

 

Thank you for your help.

[susi72]

Thanks v much for replying suzi72

 

Is it an option to pay back a previous tax year (i.e. 2009-2010) even though they are not asking about it in a review? i.e. for the reason that, the circumstances for that year are no different - when compared to later years you've had to pay back)

 

If you volunteered to pay it back, would you just get a repayment notice, or would they fully investigate it and ask you to send stuff in?

 

Do you think that offering to pay it back (just for peace of mind) is as good as admitting fraud... even if it was a mistake? ?In their eyes, are you likely to look more guilty? which might lead to further action.

 

Thank you for your help.

 

 

No problem Lis.

 

Being honest and this is just IMHO; I think they would think you were mad to ask about previous years because they have only asked about a specific portion and if you admitted it then all the better. If you did ask about other years then they would be duty bound to investigate it opening your whole claim and most likely claims with other departments up, so that would mean the DWP, Housing Benefit, Council Tax Benefit etc. I think it's admirable you'd want to pay it back and they would too no doubt but only you can say if you really think it's a good idea. If you think it will definitely relieve you of some burden of guilt and make you feel better then go ahead.

 

I would say offering to pay it though would sound very much like guilt to them though.

[britishred]

does anyone know how kizzy 1972 has got on?

[kizzy1972]

Hi, to update we have now officially seperated, the strain of this all has been too much. Im sad but feel stronger to deal with it on my own.

Got a renewal letter on 19th saying the contacted me and as i hadnt replied they wanted information by 1st July for year 2011=2012. I have been to solicitor who has advised me to say nothing as i told him i'd been claiming for 10 years and that Jail is a real possibility. Husband was pushing me to write letter and explain 2011-2012 and thats all but my Father has advised me to take the legal advice, im listening to my Father which is partially why we have split up.

 

I might be making the wrong decision.... God

[britishred]

kizzy i dont know what to say i am hiding my dilema from my family . i wish us both luck i will keep you posted