DWP unveils ‘eligibility verification’ as banks could be checking on benefit claimants

Banks could be monitoring benefit claimants’ accounts and reporting back to the DWP, but Brits are being assured they’ll only share “very minimal information”

The Department for Work and Pensions revealed on October 8th that banks will now be brought into the welfare system to help monitor claimants in order to cut down benefit fraud. The new measures will require the financial institutions to provide the DWP with insights when investigators request during instances of suspected overpayment.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall announced in Parliament on Tuesday the new ‘Eligibility Verification’ measures will require banks to examine data they have on benefit claimants and report back to investigators at the DWP. Under the Fraud, Error and Debt Bill, new powers are being granted to the DWP including the requirement that banks need to assist in detecting fraudulent activity.

The Secretary shared: “Through our Eligibility Verification measure, (the DWP will) require banks and financial institutions to examine their own data sets to highlight where someone may not be eligible for the benefits they are being paid. This will help DWP identify incorrect payments, prevent debts from accruing for the claimant and help identify where there may be fraudulent activity. Banks will only share very minimal information, and this will only be used by DWP to support further inquiry, if needed, into a potential overpayment.”

The department has also confirmed the measures won’t give investigators access to claimants bank accounts directly to see how they spend benefit payments and it won’t be used on state pension. The new measures are intended to help officials detect when eligibility criteria isn’t being met, both purposefully and accidentally which can prevent innocent claimants from unknowingly accruing debt.

The Bill is expected to save £1.6billion over the following 5 years in an attempt to stop benefit fraud and recover money lost to overpayments while still protecting claimants who need help. The Secretary noted that some of the DWP’s powers to prevent benefit fraud are no longer fit for purpose as they haven’t been updated in over 2 decades.

Some of the other new powers the Bill provides to DWP includes:

• Search and seizure to take greater control of investigations into criminal gangs
• Ability to make changes to the penalty system to fairly punish fraudsters
• Greater debt recovery abilities