Benefit Fraud

[Agrigor]

Hi,

 

Hope someone can give me some advice. I am age 19 Ive been claiming income support since 16 when I moved out, I also claimed housing benefit.In about November 2011 I got a job but I didnt inform the jobcentre and when I received a form from the job centre in march I put I wasnt working by accident but I was working, I had exams and was very stressed and busy and didnt even read the questions properly on the form. I stopped receiving benefits because I started uni. But from November 2011 till September 2012 I was receiving benefits and working. I didnt know that you had to inform them and thought that they would get in touch with me if I wasn't allowed to work and receive benefits (obviously I was very wrong). I had the interview today and explained that I didnt know the rules and apologized for putting the wrong answer in the form. But I am absolutely petrified in case I have to go to court.

Edited January 29, 2013 by Agrigor

[honeybee13]

Hello and welcome to CAG.

 

I'm going to move your thread to the benefits forum, where the guys should be able to help you. I'll leave a short term redirect on this forum for you.

 

My best, HB

[huggy41]

i think you need to rewrite your post

 

confused with the dates

[Agrigor]

i think you need to rewrite your post

 

confused with the dates

 

I was receiving benefits and working from November 2011 till September 2012. But I was also in full time education so it was only a part time job.

[abc123def]

Have they told you how much the overpayment is? You've done the right thing by being honest now and up front, once you know the amount of overpayment you can make offers of payments to pay it back. Are you still s student? Do you work alongside?

[Agrigor]

No they haven't came up with a decision yet, so it could either be a prosecution, caution and administrative penalty. Yeah I am still a student and still have a part time job. Im more than happy to repay the money I'm annoyed with myself for not taking my time to do the form properly but I rushed it through and when it asked if I was working I ticked no, so I know it means I've mislead them but I didnt do it on purpose, I was just careless. But I actually didnt know if you could or couldnt work while receiving income support and thought that if it wasnt allowed they would contact me as soon as I started working. And Ive explained all that during the interview today and said Im sorry and that I am happy to repay all the money. Because I never wanted to be on benefits in the first place it was just because of my circumstances I had to be. So they have all that recorded on the tape which I guessed will be used to make the decision, Im just sooo scared in case their decision will be prosecution.

[id6052]

Were you interviewed under caution?

 

Who interviewed you?

DWP or Council or both?

 

How many hours a week were you working?

[Agrigor]

Were you interviewed under caution?

 

Who interviewed you?

DWP or Council or both?

 

How many hours a week were you working?

 

Yeah I was interviewed under caution, and it was DWP who interviewed me, and I was only working 16 hours a week, less during exams, and more during holidays

[scotgal68]

Were you in non-advanced full time education whilst you were claiming? ie school or NVQ or skills training?

Was it JSA or IS?

[Agrigor]

Were you in non-advanced full time education whilst you were claiming? ie school or NVQ or skills training?

Was it JSA or IS?

 

I was doing ALevels and it was IS

[id6052]

okay, if you were working 16 hours a week, then it is highly likely that your earnings would have exceeded the level at which you would have been entitled to Income Support

 

you may however have retained entitlement to Housing Benefit

[scotgal68]

16 hours is the threshold at which income support is stopped, so all the time you worked those hours, you weren't entitled to income support. If you had worked up to 15 hours you can keep the 1st £20.

I suspect from your age and the HB claim that you are living on your own? Would you consider yourself vulnerable? I am only asking this as you could consider a letter from your school/ college ( the one you attended for A- levels) and ask them to provide you with a letter of support, re living alone, and studying with no support/network x

[id6052]

being honest with you, it is unlikely that they will believe it was an accident

 

do you recall how much your average wage was? did the investigators have this information?

[Agrigor]

Im happy to repay the money but I am more worried if I'd have to go to court. I know it will take them a few months to decide but I am soo worried I am only 19 and doing a degree I never wanted to stay on benefits and I mentioned that during the interview. I am just worried sick.

[id6052]

scotgal68

 

i thought it was only first £5 you could keep as a single person (assuming no disabilities/carer responsibility)

[Agrigor]

16 hours is the threshold at which income support is stopped, so all the time you worked those hours, you weren't entitled to income support. If you had worked up to 15 hours you can keep the 1st £20.

I suspect from your age and the HB claim that you are living on your own? Would you consider yourself vulnerable? I am only asking this as you could consider a letter from your school/ college ( the one you attended for A- levels) and ask them to provide you with a letter of support, re living alone, and studying with no support/network x

 

I never told anyone I was claiming benefits, Im too ashamed I even had to, and I would like to keep it that way

[Agrigor]

being honest with you, it is unlikely that they will believe it was an accident

 

do you recall how much your average wage was? did the investigators have this information?

 

I was paid £5 and yeah they did have the information about how much I was paid and how much benefits I received

[scotgal68]

ID6002, you're right, I had in my mind that OP would attract the higher disregard - lone parent!

You're not a lone parent are you Agricor? x

[Agrigor]

ID6002, you're right, I had in my mind that OP would attract the higher disregard - lone parent!

You're not a lone parent are you Agricor? x

 

No I am not a parent

[scotgal68]

I think you will just have to await their decision then, hopefully they'll treat you with a degree of leniency given your age etc.

Good Luck x

[Agrigor]

I think you will just have to await their decision then, hopefully they'll treat you with a degree of leniency given your age etc.

Good Luck x

 

 

Hope so, I was just wondering if anyone knows how long it will take for them to decide?

[id6052]

Hope so, I was just wondering if anyone knows how long it will take for them to decide?

 

impossible to tell, it can be anything from weeks to months, it is unlikely to be a fast process

[Agrigor]

impossible to tell, it can be anything from weeks to months, it is unlikely to be a fast process

 

Also I was wondering how high are the chances that it will come down to prosecution and if it does come down to that, does it mean ill go to jail :/

[scotgal68]

Agricor - read this, it's a bit encouraging, although I don't know how much the overpayment actually is

 

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/sanction-policy.pdf

[Agrigor]

Agricor - read this, it's a bit encouraging, although I don't know how much the overpayment actually is

 

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/sanction-policy.pdf

 

Thank you, I've actually went through my bank statements and calculated that from November 2011 till September 2012 I was paid £1729.71 that's from my job