New legislation is coming into force to crackdown on issues in the benefit system
DWP officials have discussed ramping up efforts to tackle benefit fraud. The update follows new legislation coming into force to combat fraud and error within the benefits system.
These measures include examining the bank account details of individuals claiming certain benefits to verify their eligibility.The checks will initially apply to those receiving Universal Credit, Pension Credit and Employment and Support Allowance. The legislation indicates that this scope could be widened to encompass other benefits.
Fresh powers will also enable investigators to directly withdraw sums from a person’s bank account if they owe the DWP money and are refusing to repay it. Senior DWP officials answered questions from the Work and Pensions Committee regarding the department’s efforts to tackle fraudulent and incorrect payments within the benefits system. DWP permanent secretary, Peter Schofield, informed the committee this represents “a big focus” for his department, reports the Mirror.
He stated there is a team operating “at full pelt” on “targeted case review”, to identify where they can achieve savings by halting incorrect payments. The DWP has received approximately £300million in funding for this during the current year, which finances around 4,000 agents to examine cases.
Mr Schofield noted the department has succeeded in substantially reducing the proportion of fraudulent and incorrect payments for Universal Credit over the last two years.
Stopping payments
He provided reassurance that whilst they employ machine learning to identify suspected fraudulent payments, the final decision is always made by a human being. Mr Schofield clarified: “In our fraud and error work, we don’t stop any benefits without a human looking at this, reviewing all the evidence, from all sorts of different sources that they’ve got, including understanding markers of vulnerability or complex needs as well, and then making a decision off the back of that.”
He mentioned that additional safeguards are being introduced to prevent incorrect payments from being issued initially. These encompass sending reminders to claimants to “let us know of a change in circumstance”, such as when a recipient has children over the age of 16, to inform the department if they remain in full-time education.
Claimants can receive additional money through Universal Credit for children until they turn 16. Nevertheless, this extra payment can continue until they reach 19, provided they are undertaking full-time education or training.
The additional sum amounts to £399 monthly for your first child, if they were born before April 6, 2017, or £298.81 if they were born on or after this date. Claimants receive £298.81 for their second child or any subsequent children.
You can currently only get the extra amount for your first two children, meaning you can get up to £631.81 in additional cash. However, this rule is changing from April 2026, after Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced in the Autumn Budget 2024 that Labour would scrap the two-child cap that applies to certain benefits.
