The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is requesting Universal Credit claimants to provide additional documents, including bank statements, for benefit reviews.
Universal Credit Claimants Required to Submit Bank Statements Amid DWP Benefit Reviews
By Lydia Amazouz
Published on 1 October 2024 21:32
The Department for Work and Pensions is reviewing thousands of Universal Credit claims. People are being asked to provide several months' worth of bank statements to help officials confirm that their payments are accurate.
Universal Credit Claimants Required to Submit Financial Documents for Review
People must send in documents from all their financial accounts, including banks, building societies, credit unions, PayPal, and gambling websites, reports BirminghamLive. The DWP checks these accounts for hidden income or large savings, which could lower or stop Universal Credit payments. They also look for any strange or suspicious transactions that could affect the claim.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) explains in its online guidance that your Universal Credit claim might be reviewed to make sure you're getting the right payment and support. If a review is needed, they will contact you through your online account. You will be asked to provide documents to confirm your details, and you’ll also need to have a phone interview.
"You'll get a message in your online account asking to see your ID and bank statements," the DWP notes. Additionally, they may request documents about your current circumstances, such as housing costs, income, self-employment, savings, childcare expenses, health conditions, or student finance.
Universal Credit Claimants Must Attend Phone Interviews or Risk Payment Suspension
The DWP further explains that you will need to attend a phone interview to discuss your claim. If you don’t attend, your payments may be stopped. It said: "You'll be invited to a phone interview to discuss your claim. If you do not attend the interview, your payment could be stopped. If you're not getting the right amount of Universal Credit. The review might find that you're getting too much or too little in your Universal Credit payment.
It also added: "If your Universal Credit needs to change, you'll get a message in your online account. Your future payments will be changed and you may get an extra payment to make up what you've missed out on, or money taken off your payments. If you disagree with a decision made during your review you can challenge the decision."