New powers under consultation by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) aim to combat welfare errors and fraud by allowing access to bank accounts and seizure of funds in suspected fraud cases. A key provision extends these checks to individuals not receiving DWP benefits, particularly through joint accounts.
Joint Accounts at Risk of Data Sharing
Financial institutions may share information on joint account holders with the DWP under the Eligibility Verification Measure. If a benefit payment enters a joint account, details about all accounts held by both individuals could be disclosed.
The DWP explains: “Information on joint account holders may be shared with DWP in certain circumstances. If the relevant benefit is paid into a joint account, for instance, details about all accounts held by both individuals will be shared with DWP by the financial institution.”
This occurs because the DWP does not disclose claimant details to external parties, leaving financial institutions unaware of which holder receives benefits. For household benefits like Universal Credit, the capital of both individuals in the same household may impact eligibility.
Data Analysis and Limited Use
Upon receiving data, the DWP analyzes it and discards information irrelevant to benefit eligibility, ensuring no further sharing or use by operational teams.
Additional rules apply to linked joint accounts held by the benefit recipient. The DWP states: “If the person who holds a benefit-receiving account also holds a linked joint account, then the details of that account may be shared with DWP by the financial institution. No information about any other accounts held by the other account holder would be shared in this circumstance as these accounts would not be classed as a linked account.”
Account holders receiving specified DWP benefits should note that their accounts and linked ones fall under this measure. The DWP plans to inform claimants through multiple channels.
