Benefit Fraud-Govt to check your personal details to find cheats

[Greybeard]

Experian are already involved in the Tax Credit system making life hell for those who dutifully try to report a change in circumstances.

 

http://hubpages.com/hub/Working-Families-Child-Tax-Credit-Helpline-Hell-With-Experian-Security-Checks

 

Heaven help the poor, the govt. seem determined to do all they can to hinder them.

[Tony]

I thought this new Government were intending to scale back intrusion into peoples lives, at the risk of stating the obvious this appears the exact opposite to what they said.

 

That may be true Tony but if a system is working at 99% efficiency it can't be all that bad. I am not an economist but I have heard of law of diminishing marginal returns.

 

I have to agree with you and I'm sure that cleverer men than me (and you?) will have the cost benefit reward worked out.

 

If this new system is a cost effective way of further reducing it then it seems perfectly reasonable since it just uses existing data in a new way. There is no extra data collection, no additional prying but I would also like to be assured that it won't be used as an extra stick to beat people who are doing no wrong.

[Tomataheeed]

I have to agree with you and I'm sure that cleverer men than me (and you?) will have the cost benefit reward worked out.

 

If this new system is a cost effective way of further reducing it then it seems perfectly reasonable since it just uses existing data in a new way. There is no extra data collection, no additional prying but I would also like to be assured that it won't be used as an extra stick to beat people who are doing no wrong.

 

Isn't this just what banks and other employers do with their own employees? i.e. is the person's lifestyle consistent with their income. Its just flags up people to take a closer interest in.

[Blackbeard]

MAybe you missed my question the first time..how do they know fraud is only 1%? Surely you don't know it's happening until you find it?

 

I don't but I am taking my information from "what could be" a trusted source, the BBC.

 

I do know that it is also claimed that "Pensioners 'miss out on £5bn of benefits annually'"

 

http://www.cafonline.org/default.aspx?page=19387

 

My question to you would be How much goes unclaimed?

[Tomataheeed]

The big frauds are organised crime that is already investigated. There are some big groups systematically scamming the system, and the way the gov have moved a lot of the contacts with the claimants to telephone rather than face to face has allowed these big scams to happen more easily. A friend of mine used to work in benefit fraud in London investigating some large groups of organised fraudsters - nightmare job trying to unpick what is going on. And dangerous people to deal with as well.

[Anna B]

I hope they devote the same time and money to tax evasion which will net them far more money, but then a lot of the main offenders are pals of the government and we mustn't upset them, must we...

 

Incidently, according to government figures, only 1% of the total is down to benefit fraud, far more is lost through administration error.

[Grandad.Malky]

Only about 1% of all benefits are fraudulently claimed.

 

It’s a bit like the police are telling shop keepers to not waist their time but all those 20 quids add up especially when the word gets round that you wont get pulled, which benefits fraud do you think we should turn a blind eye to?

 

Don't report shoplifters if they've stolen goods worth less than £20, police tell retailers

[Greybeard]

.....but I would also like to be assured that it won't be used as an extra stick to beat people who are doing no wrong.

 

It's already being used as a stick to beat those who are trying to do things by the book. See the link in my post above yours.

[Greybeard]

 

My question to you would be How much goes unclaimed?

 

According to the MSE web site it could be as much as £16billion.

 

Cameron is spouting about the immorality of claiming benefits without entitlement. Where does that leave the govt.'s morality in not taking steps to ensure those who are entitled to them receive their benefits ?

 

They readily admit that a significant proportion of incorrect benefit payment is down to agency error, although I suspect it's more likely to be downright incompetence - especially in the case of HMRC and Tax Credits.

[Vague_Boy]

I’m not sure how this will sit with those Libdem supporters on here who argued against the previous Governments intrusion into our personal lives though.

 

I'm wondering old chap, did a LibDem run off with your wife or something?

 

 

I heard that tax fraud costs the country 15x more than benefit fraud.

Everybody hears that claim from time to time, but it isn't true.

 

According to the National Fraud Authority, of the £30 billion worth of fraud occurring annually, fraud relating to HM Revenues and Customs accounted for £15.2 billion, whereas benefit fraud accounted for only £1.1 billion.

 

LINK

 

So that 15x figure is in fact quite accurate.

 

Far be it from me to observe that's it's far easier for the media to demonize low-income families than it is to lay into the even bigger crooks in the middle-classes, despite the astonishing disparities in the level of fraud.

 

I guess it just goes to show that chavs really are lazier than the rest of us. If they really wanted to, they could bring their levels of fraud up to the same level as the tax cheats. But will they? Will they 'eck!