accused of fraud

[mummyjane]

i have been accused of fraud, i have an interview on tuesday, i received an inheritance when my father died ayear ago and am on benefits, i didnt realise to declare it , i have no money left, to repay it i am devestated and obviously stupid please help, what can i expect for being an idiot

[jojojojoanne]

wonder what techniques they will choose to use to interview her

[sara3]

they'll switch the tapes on, caution her, ask her questions and she can choose whether she wants to answer.

[jojojojoanne]

and if she says she was unaware like she has said on here is there a way to prove she was aware

[sara3]

I'm not sure how many times I've said this now! she was regularly sent leaflets reminding her what she needs to declare. what she chooses to do with them (read them or not) makes no difference at all. it was her responsibility to declare it.

and if she's filled in a form since she's had the money, and omitted to declare it, she's in even more trouble.

[bednobs]

jojo if "i didnt know" was a valid defence then everyone would just say t and get away with it

[jojojojoanne]

but the fact is whether she was supposed to declare it or not she did not declare it, who determines what ones level of responsibility is?

[sara3]

the law, and she's broken it! even if she has genuinely made a "mistake" it's not a good enough excuse.

you can't claim benefits and do what you like. it doesn't work like that!

[jojojojoanne]

putting the cynical-ness to one side she genuinely may have not known and she cant make excuses for that which she did not know maybe unlikely to some but then again it just could have happened

[ummmm]

She will be cautioned and questioned and then the tape is sent to a different party for them to listen to it and the decision is then made.

'I didn't know' is not a defence....because all she had to do is go on the internet as she's doing now and she would have had the answer in seconds.

If she thought that she could receive 93k while the tax payer still pays her.....she should be done for ignorance and stupidy alone.

[jojojojoanne]

the law governs society it doesnt determine personal responsibility

[ummmm]

What planet did you come down from jojojo????

[tamborine]

It amounts to those on benefits who receive a legacy from parents have to share it with the tax payer......surely not?

[sara3]

no one asked her to share, just to stop claiming to be destitute.

[sara3]

maybe I can blow my wages every month on cosmetic surgery, new cars etc, then claim benefits?

no?

[ummmm]

No...you don't have to share it. You can keep it all to yourself. You just can't claim benefits while you have a sum like that in the bank. Regardless how you spent it.

[dot.haukes]

that 93K should have lasted you a few years. What would your parents think if they new you had spent their entire life's work in just a year? they slaved all their lives to leave a decent inheritence for their kids and you blow it. You need to call in that 20k of your money that you used to pay off someone else's debt. too, i hope you have proof you lent it them.

[caththecrazy]

It is the school holidays you know....

[Eve]

Ignorance is not a defence. Should a drink driver who kills someone be let off because they didn't know what the drink drive limit was? Harsh example but I hope you get my point, it's common sense.

I have arthritis and other conditions and am in a lot of pain a lot of the time but I've always worked and paid my way. Even when I was out of work for a while, I scraped by and economised and did temporary work until I could get another job rather than claim.

I have no problem with people who claim for genuine reasons but I don't see why the tax payer should support me when I'm perfectly capable of supporting myself.

So if your benefits added up to about 8k a year, think how long the amount you inherited could have supported you for instead of you just blowing it and still having us hard working tax paying folk paying for you.

I have to wonder how you have a hope of paying it back as well which means more tax payers hard earned money down the drain.

[gentleman]

How dare some of you challenge this person's tale. This person is only trying to make friends and get as many response as possible. If he simply made an entry too difficult to understand then no one wants to know

[Twenty20]

Can this thread be moved to Chatterbank where it belongs rather than in Law?