DWP Universal Credit benefit claimants asked to show bank statements to check payments are valid
Financial documents are examined by the DWP to look for signs of undeclared income or high levels of savings that would reduce or stop a Universal Credit claim
by David Bentley, Sonia Sharma · ChronicleLiveUniversal Credit claimants are being warned they could be asked to show their bank statements to the Department for Work and Pensions.
Thousands of benefit claims are being checked by the DWP. And people are being asked to supply several months of bank statements so officials can see their benefit payments are correct.
Documents must be sent in from all financial accounts a claimant has, including banks, building societies and credit unions, along with PayPal and gambling websites where cash can be stored. These are examined to look for signs of undeclared income or high levels of savings that would reduce or stop a Universal Credit claim, as well as any other unusual or suspicious credits or debits.
The reviews are widespread and are part of a long-running initiative to check all existing benefit entitlements are valid and correct, reports BirminghamLive. The DWP explains in its online guidance: "Your Universal Credit claim might be reviewed to make sure you're getting the right payment and support.
"If your claim is going to be reviewed, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will contact you and let you know through your online account. You'll need to send DWP some documents to confirm your details and have a phone interview.
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"You'll get a message in your online account asking to see your ID and bank statements. You might also need to share documents about your circumstances and the amount of Universal Credit you're getting. For example, you might need to provide documents about your housing costs, earnings or other income, self-employment, savings, childcare costs, children, health conditions, student finance, and caring responsibilities."
It added: "You'll be invited to a phone interview to discuss your claim. If you do not attend the interview, your payment could be stopped, if you're not getting the right amount of Universal Credit. The review might find that you're getting too much or too little in your Universal Credit payment.
"If your Universal Credit needs to change, you'll get a message in your online account. Your future payments will be changed and you may get an extra payment to make up what you've missed out on, or money taken off your payments. If you disagree with a decision made during your review you can challenge the decision."
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