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What is the Social Security Fraud Act 2001?
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An Act to make provision, for the purposes of the law relating to social security, about the obtaining and disclosure of information; and to make provision for restricting the payment...
- Plain View
Social Security Fraud Act 2001. Introductory Text. Obtaining...
- Explanatory Notes
All reference to 'Parts' and 'sections' are from the Social...
- Original (As Enacted)
Text created by the government department responsible for...
- Open Schedules Only
Social Security Fraud Act 2001 is up to date with all...
- Open Act Without Schedules
Social Security Fraud Act 2001 is up to date with all...
- Offences
An Act to make provision, for the purposes of the law...
- Introductory Text
Social Security Fraud Act 2001 2001 CHAPTER 11. An Act to...
- Loss of Benefit for Repeated Benefit Fraud
Social Security Fraud Act 2001, Section 7 is up to date with...
- Plain View
- Foreword
- Introduction
- What Are The Powers?
- Who Is Authorised to Use These Powers?
- How Should The Powers Be used?
- What Safeguards Are there?
- Appendix 1: Who Can Be Required to Provide Information?
- Appendix 3: When and About Whom May Authorised Officers Require Information?
1. This is version three of the Code of Practice. Version two was issued and laid before Parliament on 30 April 2002. 2. The Code has been revised to take account of changes introduced by the Civil Partnership Act 2004, the Welfare Reform Act 2007, the Welfare Reform Act 2012, the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, the Marriage and Civil Partner...
What is the purpose of this Code?
1.1. The Social Security Fraud Act 2001 (referred to as the Fraud Act 2001) introduced powers for Authorised Officers[footnote 2] from the DWP and local authorities[footnote 3] to obtain information from specified persons and organisations[footnote 4]about their customers to help detect benefit fraud. More information on the specified list of Information Providers can be found at Appendix 1. 1.2. The powers were inserted into the Administration Act as amendments to Section 109B and 110A and a...
Who is this Code of Practice for?
1.4. This code is intended for: 1. DWPauthorised officers 2. local authority authorised officers (while they still have responsibility for investigating social security benefit fraud) 3. organisations and people required to provide information under these powers The code may also be of interest to persons with a legal interest and members of the public who wish to know more about these powers.
Who is required to provide information?
1.5. Only those specified in Section 109B(2A) of the Administration Act 1992 may be requested to provide information (a list of Information Providers can be found at Appendix 1.
Who can be required to provide information?
2.1. Information Providers listed at section 109B(2A) of the Administration Act are legally required to provide information to an Authorised Officer. A list of those Information Providers can be found at Appendix 1.
What types of information will be requested?
2.2. Authorised Officers will request any relevant information necessary for the purposes as set out in Section 109A(2) of the Administration Act. Examples of the type of information that may be requested can be found at Appendix 2. 2.3. For the purposes of Sections 109A, 109B and 109C of the Administration Act, tax credits (working tax credits and child tax credits) are treated as if they were social security benefits and are therefore subject to those provisions and this code[footnote 5].DW...
When and about whom may Authorised Officers require information?
2.5. Authorised Officers may require information only where they have reasonable grounds for believing that: 1. a person (identified by name or description)[footnote 6]has committed, is committing or intends to commit a benefit offence 2. a person who is a member of a family of a person who has committed, is committing or intends to commit a benefit offence 3. a person is helping someone else to commit a benefit offence 4. a person is being lied about as part of a benefit claim in respect of...
The Authorised Officer
3.1. Only DWPofficers who have the Secretary of State’s authorisation or local authority officers (where that local authority has responsibility for investigating social security benefit fraud) who have been authorised by their Chief Executive or Chief Finance Officer may use these powers. These officers are known as Authorised Officers. 3.2. DWPwill ensure that all enquiries using these powers will be made by Authorised Officers on behalf of fraud investigators. Only staff who have received...
How will officers be authorised?
3.4. In DWP, the Senior Intelligence Leader (an officer of Senior Executive Officer grade) acting on behalf of the Secretary of State will authorise officers. Authorised Officers will be of management grade, not below that of Executive Officer. They will be managed by officers not below the grade of Higher Executive Officer. 3.5. Local authority staff authorised to use these powers will be of a similar grade. They will be authorised by either: 1. the officer designated under Section 4 of the...
What will Information Providers need to know?
4.1. Information Providers should be aware that they are legally obliged to provide information that has been properly requested in writing by an Authorised Officer. This obligation overrides any duty of customer confidentiality. This means that they cannot be held liable for breach of confidentiality when the request is made in accordance with the law. 4.2. Section 35(1) of the Data Protection Act 1998 provides that the disclosure of personal data will not be in contravention of data protect...
What details should requests for information contain?
4.3. Appendix 4 specifies what must be included in all requests for information:
To whom should enquiries for information be addressed?
4.4. The DWPFraud and Error Service’s Central Criminal Intelligence will enter into agreements with Information Providers (listed in Section 109B(2A) of the Administration Act) as to where enquiries should be addressed. More information on the specified list of Information Providers can be found at Appendix 1. 4.5. DWPwill maintain a list of Information Providers who have specified a central point of contact for requests. This list will be made available to all Authorised Officers, including...
Confidentiality and security
5.1. Authorised Officers who obtain information from Information Providers are under a legal duty to observe the rules on confidentiality and must ensure that the information is kept securely and the information is only used for the purpose for which it has been obtained[footnote 7]. DWPand local authorities have strict procedures to ensure that: 1. information is only used for lawful purposes notified to the Information Commissioner (see paragraph 5.6) 2. access to personal information is li...
The fair and lawful collection of data
5.4. DWPand local authorities must process the information that has been provided by the Information Providers lawfully and fairly in order to comply with the provisions contained in the Data Protection Act 1998. The Social Security Administration Act 1992 provides the legislative power to collect and request information from Information Providers. 5.5. DWPand local authority claim forms and leaflets inform claimants that information may be sought about them from certain third parties.
The Information Commissioner
5.6. The Information Commissioner is responsible for the promotion of good practice regarding the processing of personal data. He may take action for a breach of the Data Protection Act 1998. Details for the Information Commissioner’s offices, where further information can be obtained from can be found at Appendix 5. Further information can be found on the Information Commissioner’s Office website.
Section 109(B)2A sets out the persons who can be required to provide information. They are: 1. any bank[footnote 8],[footnote 9](this includes: banks, credit unions, friendly societies, industrial and provident societies) 2. the Director of National Savings 3. any person carrying on a business the whole or a significant part of which consists in th...
Paragraph 2.4 of this Code explains that requests for information must be reasonable and must be made specifically in accordance with the legislation. Section 109A(2) of the Administration Act sets out the purposes whereby an Authorised Officer may request information. These are: 1. ascertaining in relation to any case whether a benefit is or was p...
Nov 8, 2016 · The Social Security Fraud Act 2001 (referred to as the Fraud Act) introduced powers for authorised officers of the Department for Work and Pensions and local authorities to get...
What is the purpose of this Code? 1.1 The Social Security Fraud Act 2001 (referred to as the Fraud Act) introduced powers for authorised Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and...
May 13, 2024 · Through the Bill, companies will need to take robust action to tackle fraud, including these types of scams posted on social media. Companies will have to take steps to identify, remove and limit...
- Anyone who has been a personal victim of fraud will know first-hand how damaging the financial and emotional impact can be. Similarly, fraud commit...
- 1. Fraud is an ever-present challenge in both the private and public sector.2. While the digital economy has brought enormous advances and advantag...
- 7. Our fundamental approach has always been to prevent fraud from entering the system in the first place, to detect and root out fraud when it does...
- 11. The nature of fraud has changed over the last 20 years. While the digital economy has brought enormous advances and advantages including to the...
- 21. Welfare transactions last year totalled £258.2 billion[footnote 6] – 22.5% of all UK government spending. This makes the welfare system a targe...
- 27. Fraud is unacceptable. We are committed to bolstering our defences to drive down fraud and error; staying ahead of the fraudsters and rooting o...
- 29. DWP has a well-established and wide-ranging counter-fraud function. Our Work Coaches, case managers and service centre colleagues are our prima...
- 37. DWP professionals operate under a legislative framework in their approach to fighting fraud, including data-sharing agreements, investigation p...
- 81. The plan presented in this document will help us to defend the welfare state against those who seek to illegally take advantage of it. It will...
The Social Security Fraud Bill: Allows authorised central and local government officers to require certain private and public sector organisations to provide information in connection with fraud enquiries.
An Act to make provision, for the purposes of the law relating to social security, about the obtaining and disclosure of information; and to make provision for restricting the payment of social security benefits and war pensions in the case of persons convicted of offences relating to such benefits or pensions and about the institution of ...
