Reporting Fraud

Do you know somebody who might be committing benefit fraud? Tell us about it!

We want to know about people who claim benefits and, for example:

• Don't tell us about work that they (or their partners) are doing
• Don't tell us about savings or property that they (or their partners) have
• Don't tell us that they are living with their partner
• Have other people in their household that they have not told us about
• Are not living at the address that they claim benefit from
• Are sub-letting all or part of the address that they claim benefit from
• Have no liability to pay rent
  

How to tell us about possible Benefit Fraud

Suspicions of Benefit Fraud can be reported to the council anonymously in the following ways:

• A free telephone hotline: 0800 073 1449 - enables residents to anonymously pass information about suspected benefit fraud directly to Investigation Officers during office hours, or to leave a message at other times
• A Benefit Fraud Referral form, which can be downloaded (see below) for completion by hand. The completed form can be handed in at the reception of any Islington Council office or you can post it to:
  
  Islington Council,
  Benefit Investigation Team,
  PO Box 34750,
  London N7 9EY
  

Download the Benefit Fraud Referral form by clicking on the link at the bottom of this page.

• Alternatively, you can email us at benefitfraud@islington.gov.uk, - however, emails to us will NOT guarantee your anonymity.

What happens to your referral

We evaluate every referral that we receive. We will check to ensure that there is benefit in payment to the person you suspect and whether the matter you are reporting to us has already been declared. If the suspected fraud would also affect entitlement to national benefits (such as Income Support, Jobseekers' Allowance or disability related benefits) the council will pass the relevant information to the appropriate Department for Work and Pensions Benefit Fraud team

The council can’t stop paying benefit to somebody just because we have received a fraud referral - we must first obtain evidence to prove the allegation. Investigation officers will seek evidence from a variety of sources including utility companies, banks and building societies, employers, etc. They will then interview the suspected person and give them the opportunity to offer an explanation.

If we are then satisfied that an offence may have been committed, suitable action will be taken - which may include prosecution. We will always seek to recover the benefit that has been fraudulently obtained.

Investigations can take some time and it will not be obvious that the person you have reported to us is under investigation. The law says that we have to keep information about people confidential, so we are unable to give progress reports about our investigations, even if you reported the fraud to us.