Are the Council entitled?

[Totterdown]

I am claiming Council Tax Benefit. I can understand that the Council would want to see evidence of any savings I have and even the balance in my current bank account (for what its worth) I would have no problem with. They now want to see a detailed printout of all my transactions for the past few months in and out of my current bank account. Are they entitled to see how I spend every penny I get. I think this is an invasion of privacy.

[redcrx]

i think that if you want their help and funds then yes they are entitled to ensure claimants arent fiddling the system

[ummmm]

I don't know the answer but it is a bloody invasion. What you spend your money on is your own business.....

[redcrx]

i doubt theyd want to know where it went, more than likely just ensure that you werent just taking money out and hiding it elsewhere.

[danchip]

it'll be to make sure its not going into some offshore account or that you haven't got a mortgage on another property, unfortunately with all the people on the fiddle these days its a necessary evil.

[Totterdown]

I understand what you are saying about benefit cheats and fraudsters. But I have already given them evidence of what I have coming in and also for the very small amount of savings they have seen those statements. It is the fact that they want to see how I spend my money that is annoying me. Things like supermarket food, gas bill, electric bill, telephone bill etc. should be very obvious to them, but why should they have to know if I go in M&S and buy a bra, or around Christmas bought a few Christmas presents, or drew out �50. It is my overall financial position they should judge, How I spend it is up to me surely.

[slark]

I think they are more interested in transactions for money being paid into your account. Remember if you do not tell them everthing that you get they may claim money back from you.

[Ethel]

It is your choice, Totterdown. If you don't want them to do this, don't claim the benefit.

Some people are very selective in the accounts they tell them about, and monies coming in. I hope they are being this thorough in their investigations.

Yes, how you spend your money IS your business, it is when taxpayers money is involved the authorities have a right to look very hard.

[Totterdown]

Ethel, I did not expect you to agree with me. I am not one of those selective in telling them what accounts I have. I have told them everything they need to know and have been completely honest and open about what I have coming in. They have all the necessary documentation. How I spend it is my business, be it on cigarettes and booze (which I don't, by the way), a few plants for the garden, an occasional day out, put some aside for the occasional household emergency, etc. etc. Another person may get exactly the same money as me by cash in the Post Office but their spending habits cannot be checked on. I still maintain it is my overall income that should count, not how I spend it. Of course they should check no one is cheating but they are on to the wrong one here.

[Catron]

And how are 'they' to know that? You may not have other monies coming in but the one way to check that is to have a look at your bank statements.

[Totterdown]

Thanks to all for your comments, even to those who seem to be bordering on accusing anyone having the audacity to claim any kind of benefit must be suspected of cheating the system. We are not all fortunate enough to be so independent as not to need help sometimes. Good luck to those who are but we are not all workshy scumbag scroungers as is sometimes insinuated.

[danchip]

i would imagine to some degree everyone who does claim benefits is suspected of benefit fraud by the authorities, but how do propose they choose for to investigate and who not to without annoying someone who is innocent and has nothing to hide

[tigwig]

I know what you mean but unfortunately it has to be done. We have just gone through exactly the same thing. After asking for every single bank statement for the last few months we thought that was it then a few weeks later they asked for more going back even further. We did all of this and sent it on time. We then received a letter a week later telling us we weren't entitled to the benefit because we had over �16000 in each account which was completely untrue! We were overdrawn in one and had a few hundred in the others for direct debits! When I questioned it I was told they had looked at our case early and because they did not have all the statements they had assumed we had too much money!!
So beware, get the info to them as soon as you can!

[Ethel]

I was not accusing you of fiddling or scrounging, but the fact is that some people on benefits do cheat the system and the only way the council know that you aren't is to do thorough checks.

And I think it is right they should do

[Totterdown]

I think there is some deviation from my original complaint. Obviously I expect the Council to check I do not get extra money but if I wanted to cheat I would hardly let it show on a bank statement, would I? I have no qualms whatsoever about giving them evidence of my income and for them to see evidence of any savings I have. This I have already done. My gripe is them wanting to see my bank statements, therefore seeing how I spend my money. If I was paid through a Post Office they could not know this. It is all very well for those people not claiming any benefits to be high handed about it but they would not like it if suddenly some authority in the future (whether claiming benefits or not) came up with a system of wanting to see their bank statements.

[lisa1cares]

Hi
They have every right to ask for this kind of information, its all about stoping those that like to work and claim benifits from scamming the system. there is a number of out comes that can happen if you refuse. one you loss your benifits and then they might start an investiagation into your finances. they can make a bank give them your statments of accounts weather you like that or not. you could also be investagated into your other benifits. you might not like them looking at your statement but its not an invasion of your privacy. it does not say you went to M&S and bought a bra just that you went there not what you bought.

[Totterdown]

I did not say I was going to refuse to let them see the statements, just that I was annoyed about it. But by them looking at statements does not prove a thing. Anyone who wanted to cheat would not have extra money they were given showing on the statement. So all the council would be doing is seeing how I spend money. How do they check on people who draw their money from the Post Office and do not have a bank account? I used the "bra" word as an example. They would get to know my spending habits. I don't mind them know how much goes in, they are entitled to know that. I even offered to get a statement with just money paid in showing, but the council would not accept that.

[flip_flop]

Clearly whatever anybody says on this thread which is contrary to your feeling of indignation you are not going to be happy with.

Nobody has accused you of cheating the system, and from your comments I think it is fair to say you do not sound like somebody who will cheat the system.

However, there are many out there who do cheat the system, and therefore if proper, thorough checks are being made, then good.

Ultimately this is my and every other tax payer's money and I for one want to be satisfied that proper checks are being made before they dish my money out.

I am sure a detailed examination of your outgoings will not throw up anything iffy, but I am also sure the same cannot be said for everybody, and therefore all claimants, I believe, should be treated the same.

[bednobs]

yur bank account is no different from a post office account - you could quite easily get your income, then take it out at the cashpoint or at the bank in cash, just as people with po accounts do. therefore they are NOT looking to see WHAT you spend your money on and making judgements which you seem to be implying (how could they? if you had a 50 pound debit card transaction for sainsburys its not like they can tell whether you bought clothes, fruit, chairs, or booze and fags) On the cntrary, they are checking to make sure you are not having any extra undeclared income going IN to your account for example money you are getting cash in hand for work you are doing.
They will not know you bought a bra, no will they care. The only thing i can suggest is that if you want the benefit, comply with the conditions, if you dont want to comply then dont apply for the benefit. If someone had a PO account, they would be checking for the same thing

[Totterdown]

When I said Post Office, I meant people who get their pension by CASH and do not have a bank account. I think this discussion should now be closed. I am obviously on to a losing argument.

[bednobs]

sorry if you feel got at totterdown. I believe that peoples benefits HAVE to be paid into an account now (including pensions), but i am not 100% about that