Housing benefits fraud - IUC

[mnmless]

Hello,

 

I am 19 years old and a student. Today I received a letter in the mail concerning an IUC dated for August 6th. To explain this benefit fraud; I lived alone from March 1st 2012 - September 10th 2012 and failed to contact the Council. The reason for this was because my father (who set up my flat and also Housing Benefits) told me not to worry about anything and he will sort everything out, it appears he failed to do so.

 

I was receiving £127 a fortnight (to pay my landlady) and was receiving this up until last month AFTER moving out, to my absolute horror. This totals a £2540 overpayment.

 

I KNOW that this is my responsibility 100% and I have explained this whole situation to my mother who will accompany me in this IUC.

 

To conclude this, I would like some advice on what to expect, I am worried sick and cannot eat or think about anything BUT this. I've done a lot of research but I understand that I cannot compare cases. What should I expect and what advice can some of you give me? I really don't want this to hinder my future as I am only 19 and soon to move to attend a new University and hopefully begin my life.

 

Thank you all very much!

Edited July 25, 2013 by mnmless

[citizenkain]

well,you must have noticed the money was still being paid into your bank account so theres no point in trying to say you didnt know about it,ultimately the benefits people look for the overpayment paying back so they will probably set up a payment plan for you to pay it back,they very rarely send you to prison but they might make a fine on you for a percentage of the overpayment,dont worry about it

[mnmless]

well,you must have noticed the money was still being paid into your bank account so theres no point in trying to say you didnt know about it,ultimately the benefits people look for the overpayment paying back so they will probably set up a payment plan for you to pay it back,they very rarely send you to prison but they might make a fine on you for a percentage of the overpayment,dont worry about it

Understood. I have began to pay this overpayment back. I believe that the fine is 30% of the overpaid benefit, do you know if this is true?

 

Thank you for your advice.

[antone]

Understood. I have began to pay this overpayment back. I believe that the fine is 30% of the overpaid benefit, do you know if this is true?

 

 

That is one possible outcome, yes - it's called an "Administrative Penalty". If it's offered by the council you do not have to accept it (you can choose to go to court instead) but if you did accept you would avoid a criminal record. The council does not have to offer an AP, but they may do so in cases that are not considered serious enough for court action.

[mnmless]

That is one possible outcome, yes - it's called an "Administrative Penalty". If it's offered by the council you do not have to accept it (you can choose to go to court instead) but if you did accept you would avoid a criminal record. The council does not have to offer an AP, but they may do so in cases that are not considered serious enough for court action.

 

Do you believe my case would be considered enough for court action?

Edited July 25, 2013 by mnmless

[LifeIsAMess]

Hello,

 

I am 19 years old and a student. Today I received a letter in the mail concerning an IUC dated for August 6th. To explain this benefit fraud; I lived alone from March 1st 2012 - September 10th 2012 and failed to contact the Council. The reason for this was because my father (who set up my flat and also Housing Benefits) told me not to worry about anything and he will sort everything out, it appears he failed to do so.

 

I was receiving £127 a fortnight (to pay my landlady) and was receiving this up until last month AFTER moving out, to my absolute horror. This totals a £2540 overpayment.

 

I KNOW that this is my responsibility 100% and I have explained this whole situation to my mother who will accompany me in this IUC.

 

To conclude this, I would like some advice on what to expect, I am worried sick and cannot eat or think about anything BUT this. I've done a lot of research but I understand that I cannot compare cases. What should I expect and what advice can some of you give me? I really don't want this to hinder my future as I am only 19 and soon to move to attend a new University and hopefully begin my life.

 

Thank you all very much!

 

Have you received your overpayment letter with a penalty added on before even attending your IUC?

 

I know you are worried but I would have attended the interview first and put your side of the story to them before starting to pay back. Quite often they get their figures wrong first time round too.

[antone]

Do you believe my case would be considered enough for court action?

 

No-one here can really answer that question - it depends on the specific circumstances of each case. Personally, I don't think you've committed crime of the century here. I'm assuming your claim was genuine when it was first made - in other words, you lived in the place and legitimately received benefits but those benefits continued after you moved out. Is this correct?

[mnmless]

No-one here can really answer that question - it depends on the specific circumstances of each case. Personally, I don't think you've committed crime of the century here. I'm assuming your claim was genuine when it was first made - in other words, you lived in the place and legitimately received benefits but those benefits continued after you moved out. Is this correct?

Yes, my claim was legitimate and was receiving the HB to top off my rent and then unfortunately continued once I moved out.

[mnmless]

Have you received your overpayment letter with a penalty added on before even attending your IUC?

 

I know you are worried but I would have attended the interview first and put your side of the story to them before starting to pay back. Quite often they get their figures wrong first time round too.

 

Hello,

I received a bill that had the overpayment sum which I stated in the initial post. Although it could be wrong, I was instructed to pay back within 7 days of receiving the letter or at least begin to pay back, which was the action I took. I then got the letter concerning the interview today (July 25th) and the interview will take place on August 6th.

 

Thank you for your advice.

[mnmless]

Hello, does anyone have anymore advice for me?

 

Thank you!!

[snailz]

are you entitled to any legal aid? if so, you could contact a solicitor for some advice, im sure they would be able to at least give you advice even if you wasnt entitled. maybe you could try talking to welfare rights. im going through a situation myself and i have an interview on the 8th aug. iv been looking around on the net to find out the possible outcomes. i found a website to be quite helpful, please have a read it may help.

 

http://www.advicenow.org.uk/advicenow-guides/problems-with-benefits/how-to-handle-an-interview-under-caution/after-the-interview-under-caution-html,661,FP.html

[mnmless]

are you entitled to any legal aid? if so, you could contact a solicitor for some advice, im sure they would be able to at least give you advice even if you wasnt entitled. maybe you could try talking to welfare rights. im going through a situation myself and i have an interview on the 8th aug. iv been looking around on the net to find out the possible outcomes. i found a website to be quite helpful, please have a read it may help.

 

Hello,

 

This link has been very helpful and stopped me worrying about the "worst case scenario". I've spoken to various people that have been through the same ordeal and they have also told me not to worry myself sick like we all seem to do. I wish you the best of luck for your interview, please update me on the outcome as I will do here.

 

Thank you!

[snailz]

i know a person who went to jail for housing benefit fraud BUT she had committed the offense before and then did it again, i think she was sentenced for 6 months but did 2. she owed huge amounts. so please try not to worry. even if they prosecute you i think worse case you would get a suspended sentence or maybe community service, again i think this is normally in high amounts. If you have admitted your error i dont see why they would need to take you to court, i think they do this with people who deny things. and thank you i will let you know the outcome. i wish you luck and will be thinking of you

[snailz]

i found this also, the following are taken into mind when deciding on a punishment:

 

 

• Offending carried out over a long period
  
• Offender acting with others
  
• Planning
  
• Motivated by greed or desire to live beyond his or her means
  
• False identities or details
  
• False or forged documents
  
• Official documents altered or falsified.
  

Then you have the mitigating factors also considered

 

1. a guilty plea;
   
2. the amount involved and the length of time over which the defalcations were persisted in (bearing in mind that a large total may in fact represent a very small amount weekly);
   
3. the circumstances in which the offence began (e.g. there is a plain difference between a legitimate claim which becomes false owing to a change of situation and on the other hand a claim which is false from the very beginning);
   
4. the use to which the money is put (the provision of household necessities is more venial than spending the money on unnecessary luxury);
   
5. previous character;
   
6. matters special to the offender, such as illness, disability, family difficulties, etc;
   
7. any voluntary repayment of the amounts overpaid.
   

[mnmless]

i found this also, the following are taken into mind when deciding on a punishment:

 

 

 

• Offending carried out over a long period
  
• Offender acting with others
  
• Planning
  
• Motivated by greed or desire to live beyond his or her means
  
• False identities or details
  
• False or forged documents
  
• Official documents altered or falsified.
  

 

Then you have the mitigating factors also considered

 

 

1. a guilty plea;
   
2. the amount involved and the length of time over which the defalcations were persisted in (bearing in mind that a large total may in fact represent a very small amount weekly);
   
3. the circumstances in which the offence began (e.g. there is a plain difference between a legitimate claim which becomes false owing to a change of situation and on the other hand a claim which is false from the very beginning);
   
4. the use to which the money is put (the provision of household necessities is more venial than spending the money on unnecessary luxury);
   
5. previous character;
   
6. matters special to the offender, such as illness, disability, family difficulties, etc;
   
7. any voluntary repayment of the amounts overpaid.
   

 

Oh, this is interesting. I will scan over this for the next few days, I can assume questions based on this list are what I have to look forward to. Oh and thank you for both responses, I'm feeling much better about the situation. Stay strong and keep smiling!

[snailz]

haha no this was for when deciding on a punishment should they decide to prosecute you. iv just seen back on your post that you are only 19, i think you are extremely mature and going about this honestly, i hope they will see the same

[mnmless]

haha no this was for when deciding on a punishment should they decide to prosecute you. iv just seen back on your post that you are only 19, i think you are extremely mature and going about this honestly, i hope they will see the same

Oh, I understand haha, my mistake! Yes, thank you very much for that actually. I really hope they see the same, too. You also seem to know your stuff, I'm sure you're very prepared! I'm crossing everything for everyone going through the same as us! It's not a good feeling at all.

[snailz]

i know hun, iv spent an entire week on the internet, hours at a time reading stories. now iv been looking at when people have been prosecuted and what the outcome was, the worst case iv read about is a lady (im not sure if im allowed to name people on here) who claimed £353,000 in benefits over 12 years, she lied saying 5 of her children had disabilities when they didnt, she only got 4 years in prison. i think she would serve less.

[mnmless]

i know hun, iv spent an entire week on the internet, hours at a time reading stories. now iv been looking at when people have been prosecuted and what the outcome was, the worst case iv read about is a lady (im not sure if im allowed to name people on here) who claimed £353,000 in benefits over 12 years, she lied saying 5 of her children had disabilities when they didnt, she only got 4 years in prison. i think she would serve less.

 

Ditto! I can't help but try to compare my case with others in hopes to calm myself. That's a long sentence but that's also a lot of money, I don't know how the system works. I've read about people who wrongfully claimed 5 figures and were given a warning, and this is going into the 50k mark!! Some cases are very shocking and it's very interesting how the world changes when this happens to yourself, it's changed me for the better.

[snailz]

there is a lady from runcorn who failed to declare her partner was living with her, she obtained £2500, so its a similar amount to yours although a completely different case, she got a 6 week curfew 9pm-7am and a fine of £150. thats not too scary is it.

[snailz]

aw i think you should tell them that, i think they are more likely to be lenient if they can see you are a good character and learnt from the mistake

[snailz]

right well im off to put my girls to bed as they are still up and making a mess . try and relax a bit this weekend, give yourself a break from it and stop being hard on yourself, people make mistakes and you cant change it now, you just need to look forward and start afresh.

[mnmless]

right well im off to put my girls to bed as they are still up and making a mess . try and relax a bit this weekend, give yourself a break from it and stop being hard on yourself, people make mistakes and you cant change it now, you just need to look forward and start afresh.

 

Thank you so much for this breath of fresh air! I feel there are good people in the world after all!! I totally agree, mistakes are mistake and cannot be changed, only the person that made them. I am hoping the best for your interview, have a good night!

[antone]

i know hun, iv spent an entire week on the internet, hours at a time reading stories. now iv been looking at when people have been prosecuted and what the outcome was, the worst case iv read about is a lady (im not sure if im allowed to name people on here) who claimed £353,000 in benefits over 12 years, she lied saying 5 of her children had disabilities when they didnt, she only got 4 years in prison. i think she would serve less.

 

[bolding mine]

 

Regarding naming people, if something is a matter of public record (say, has been reported in the papers or whatever) then it should be OK.

[snailz]

oh ok thanks antone, i didnt want anyone to jump on me and boot me out