The Department for Work and Pensions has been accused of being ‘beyond the pale’ after asking a Universal Credit claimant to hand over nine years of bank statements
The Department for Work and Pensions has requested a Universal Credit claimant to provide nine years of bank statements. The DWP is asking benefit recipients to submit all statements from the time their savings exceeded the £6,000 limit.
A Reddit user shared: “Currently going through a UC claim review, and the agent is asking for ‘your bank statement for the (bank name) from where the money in the account went above £6,000 till date'”.
“As best as I can tell, that was almost exactly NINE YEARS AGO. I have been on UC for six months. I cannot see how this is relevant or why I should have to supply this info.
“Especially since my bank’s online banking only goes back seven years, and beyond that, I will have to order paper copies, scan each page, and upload them to the UC site.
“Is this even remotely reasonable? I can’t imagine why I need to send them this info, and I can’t imagine how it’s even useful to them. I’ve tried explaining this situation to them and asking them to clarify what they’re asking for, but they just keep repeating the same thing.”, reports Birmingham Live.
“I’m happy to cooperate with UC and have sent them everything they’ve asked for so far, but this feels beyond the pale and unnecessarily invasive.”
To be eligible for Universal Credit, you typically must not have more than £16,000 in cash, savings and investments as a single claimant or if you are cohabiting with a partner.
If your savings are less than £6,000, it will not impact your award. However, if you have cash, savings and investments between £6,000 and £16,000, your Universal Credit payments will be reduced.
For every £250 you have between £6,000 and £16,000, your payments will be cut by £4.35.
An additional £4.35 is deducted for any remaining amount that does not makeup a complete £250.
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