The Department for Work and Pensions has confirmed the two bank balances that will trigger a bank account check under its new Eligibility Verification measures. The DWP has rolled out guidance for these measures as it cracks down on fraud, error and overpayments.
Bank account checks explained
The new guidance spells out how the bank account checks will work. After being issued an Eligibility Verification Notice (EVN), banks will have to hand over details that fit specific criteria. For Universal Credit, the focus is on capital.
Bank accounts at risk are those with more than £16,000, which is the upper capital threshold for Universal Credit. In this example, the eligibility indicator is capital above £16,000.
However, the DWP warns that anyone with cash between £6,000 and £16,000 could theoretically be affected. The guidance states: "The ask may vary: for example, it may be that information is only returned in cases where there is a specific amount above £16,000, or it may be that DWP lowers this amount to help verify the correctness of payments where a claimant has between the lower capital limit of £6,000 and the upper capital limit of £16,000."
This is because a person's Universal Credit award entitlement is tapered where they have capital between £6,000 and £16,000.
Other eligibility indicators
The DWP also notes that eligibility indicators may be set to require financial institutions to return information about accounts receiving relevant benefits where there are indications that the account holder may have spent more time overseas than benefit eligibility rules allow. This is not an exhaustive list of possible eligibility indicators.
Impact on benefits
The crackdown affects Universal Credit, Pension Credit, and Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). The Bill is expected to save the Department £1.5 billion over the next five years, after DWP figures showed it lost an eye-watering £10 billion to error and fraud in the past calendar year.
The Labour Party government says it forms part of wider government plans to save a total of £8.6 billion over five years in "the biggest welfare fraud and error budget package in recent history."
