Would you report a family member for benefit fraud?

[Arese]

Inspired by a few threads around benefit fraud.

Would you report a member of your family if you found out that they were claiming benefits fraudulently? I've known for some time that a few members of my extended family do so, and to be quite frank it disgusts me so thankfully I have nothing to do with them. I haven't seen these particular family members for years.

Would you report them? I see that it can be done quite easily here and I'm sure I could provide enough information to at least prompt an investigation.

My concern is that I don't know the full story, but I know that what he is doing is wrong.

[Arese]

davepoth said:

It's anonymous, why not?

The only thing that's stopping me is that I'd feel rather guilty if I heard that he'd gone to jail!

[Arese]

obob said:

Arese said:

davepoth said:

It's anonymous, why not?

The only thing that's stopping me is that I'd feel rather guilty if I heard that he'd gone to jail!

Doubt that he would go to jail, as the advert says. "Beware you could face an interview under caution" ooooooooooooooooooh scary stuff!!

I'm pretty sure said family member has previous convictions for various non-violent crimes. He's a colourful character.

[Arese]

Loopyleesa said:

Martin Keene said:

Depends on the situation, an honest hard working family member who has paid tax for years and is doing a bit if cash in hand work for a few weeks to top up JSA, then no.

Some useless tosser whos never had a job as is milking everything he can get and screwing the system, in a heartbeat.

Yes, I agree with that totally.

This person definitely sits in the second category.

• He lives with a girl but is registered as living at home, so she can claim single mother's something-or-other.
• He claims JSA but works for cash as a labourer.
• He has also (apparently) just been awarded a five-figure sum for an industrial injury.

[Arese]

Loopyleesa said:

(like the way I shouted yes?)

But try using bold tags to really get your point across. Just a bit of feedback.

[Arese]

"Your form has been successfully processed. Thankyou."

[Arese]

Galsia said:

Arese said:

"Your form has been successfully processed. Thankyou."

Well done!

I have my new thread prepared for in a couple of weeks:

"Damn. My cousin has committed suicide. My fault?"

[Arese]

BliarOut said:

elster said:

BliarOut said:

elster said:

BliarOut said:

I am genuinely shocked by the result at the moment, 14% no? Labour's thought police have got a lot to answer for. What has society come to when you can't trust your own family members.

It is shocking that 14% of people on here believe fraud is all fine and well when it is your family.

Glad you're not related to me.

I am lucky that my family aren't con artists. If they were I would report them.

I don't like theft, and if someone I knew was defrauding the state then they would indeed get reported.

So you approve of scumbag culture.

Edited by elster on Wednesday 20th October 16:32

You see to me a scumbag is a grass in the family.... I suppose I put family ahead of the state, that's all.

Do you take that to the next level and falsify your accounts to pay as little tax as possible? Therefore looking after your family?

[Arese]

T84 said:

Not that anyone in my family would, mind. Nice to see there's people that will backstab their own blood on here.

Look at it this way.

I've worked since I left school at 16, going to college part time for a number of years whilst I earnt a paltry wage and paid tax on that wage. So, I've been working and paying tax into the system for 18 years. Like millions of other people.

A member of my extended family has been a scrote pretty much for the whole time I've been working hard. He's the same age as me, and has been in trouble with the 'authorities' on many occasions. He even stole his own parents car, trashed it, and denied all knowledge. He's caused his parents lots of anguish. He now steals money from the same pot that I and millions of other people have been paying into for many years.

So, should I just shrug my shoulders because he is 'family'?

[Arese]

T84 said:

It really depends what the relation is, I'm sure we're all related some way or another

Again, I think it's naive to think that if benefit cheating ending tomorrow, that we'd actually pay less into the pot (Not that that is justification, obviously!)

But your last paragraph attempts to justify it by him sounding like a not very nice person.

If you're sticking to your principles, you should be prepared to grass your own parents up as well, would you?

I didn't grass him up thinking that I'd end up paying less into the pot, I'm not that daft! I grassed him up because, frankly, he's gone through life as a thief and makes a choice to not conform to the laws by which we are governed. Everyone else has to, why shouldn't he?

If I found out that one of my parents was doing a similar thing, I would speak to them and let them know that what they are doing is theft, and that I was disgusted. If they were that desperate for the money, I'd give them an allowance! The difference is, I don't know my cousin well enough, nor do I care about him enough, to speak to him about it.

[Arese]

T84 said:

There we go then, it appears you don't really consider your cousin as 'family' anyway.

Well I did say in my first post that he was extended family and I didn't have anything to do with him. Unfortunately, you can't choose your 'family'.

[Arese]

CrashTD said:

Cash in Hand and screw the taxman I can deal with.

Cash in hand & JSA I cant.

How do you feel they differ?

[Arese]

Hedders said:

Arese said:

CrashTD said:

Cash in Hand and screw the taxman I can deal with.

Cash in hand & JSA I cant.

How do you feel they differ?

You can't see the difference between supporting yourself with your own labout and stealing from the government?

Of course I can.

I was asking how CrashTD felt his two examples differed.

[Arese]

Interesting thread Gentlemen (and fraudsters). I'm leaving work now, got to go and get my Giro before they close.

[Arese]

Snoop Bagg said:

Benefit fraud is one of the things about the UK that really annoys me. I have one neighbour who had spent the last 18months caring for her dying partner, obviously until he died. But I also have another who has never worked.

Her whole life for 18 months was about her partner and now she's struggling to cope, and to be honest I can see her hitting the bottle. I've seen this happen before and cannot witness the lies and deceit that goes along with alcoholism for a second time. For the last five months I've been making sure she eats and doing my best to try and make sure she dosn't end up on a liquid diet, although "I'm not her keeper". In my opinion there seems to be a distinct lack of support before and after her partner died, from her family and the benefits system.

Now the other guy has a business in "knock off" goods, dosn't work and has savings he's clearly not declared to the Department of Work & Pensions. He claims incapacity benefit for anxiety and depression yet party's until 4am most weeknights. He'll of been on holiday three times in six weeks, I've not been on holiday once this year apart from a camping trip with my mates and a bike rally, I've have never claimed any form of benefits in my life. To be honest I'd clean pub toilets if it was a job!

I live in a block of privately rented flats and have even got to the point of reporting him to the Environmental Health with the view of awarding him the golden ASBO medal, but unfortunately they need your details for proceedings, and I don't want comeback on me or my possesions!

Luckily the DWP allow you to report people anonomously on their website, which I felt was my duty, the guy is a professional scrounger. I would welcome the chance to see him kicked out and made to pay every penny back to the state. Although this guy isn't a family member, it is the principal of benefit theft that I dislike. Old people require benefits, disabled people require benefits, carers require benefits but scroungers which just get a doctors note when they're doing better than most of us, do not need benefits.

But this is the otherside of the coin, I really think these welfare officers should be clamping down on the Doctor's who sign people onto benefits system when they're perfectly well, all they do is put on a bit of an act and get free living. Last time I was at a the Doctors an old man jogged past me on the way to the surgery with his walking stick in one hand, as soon as he got in he started walking around like he was in utter pain and hobbling round.

This in my opinion is morally wrong, so if a family member were to claim benefits for a prolonged time, when they didn't really require them, then yes I'd report them. The regular worker's with a degree of moral principle has to pay for them. At the end of the day, and there are far more people who actually need them!

Thank fk I move out in November!

[Arese]

cal72 said:

Anyone catch the interview on calendar(yorkshire area) news last night?

A single mum who works and benifits topped up and a couple that both claim he was on incapacity and she claimed as his carer. there was one part i heard her say "a ps3 is £400 and how am i going to get that now"

You maybe able to see it on itv player i am not sure, but i did have a outburst when i saw it.

I don't think I could watch it.