DWP fraud and error review of five benefits ahead of May 2027 statistics, Digi Mart USA News: Five benefits are being checked by the Department for Work and Pensions for signs of fraud and error ahead of a major announcement in May. The DWP will check five key benefits for fraud rates in a “measuring” exercise.
The DWP will then publish its next Accredited Official Statistics release in May 2027, which covers the levels of fraud and error in the DWP benefit system. These estimates show the amount of money overpaid and underpaid to claimants and are an important metric included in the department’s annual report and accounts, which are audited by the National Audit Office.
Management information, data and analysis are regularly provided to officials within the department, allowing trends to be identified promptly and issues addressed. This ensures a continued focus on the issue of fraud and error.
The DWP has confirmed the five benefits set to be examined are Universal Credit, Housing Benefit (pension age, non-passported cases), Pension Credit, State Pension and Personal Independence Payment.
The DWP said: “We intend to publish our FYE 2027 estimates in May 2027. For more information about the information within this document, please email us: enquiries.fema@dwp.gov.uk.” It added that the Accredited Official Statistics can be found in the collection of Fraud and Error in the Benefit System.
The statistics release will show how much money the department incorrectly pays, either by paying people too much benefit (overpayments) or by not paying enough benefit (underpayments). This is calculated as a percentage of the total annual amount of benefit paid by the department, known as expenditure.
These percentages are referred to as overpayment or underpayment rates throughout the publication.
The proportion of benefit claims that are overpaid or underpaid is also reported. Overpayments happen because of fraud, claimant error and official error, including processing errors or delays by the DWP, a local authority or His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
Underpayments happen because of official error.
