31 October 2005 - Benefit Fraud Inspectorate (BFI) Inspection Report on Tandridge District Council
The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, David Blunkett, has today published an inspection report by the BFI on Tandridge District Council’s overpayments activity.
In 2004/05, Tandridge District Council administered some £11 million in housing benefits, about 28 per cent of its gross revenue expenditure. In June 2005, BFI carried out an inspection on Tandridge District Council’s administration of overpayments.
Inspectors found there was a great deal of commitment and professionalism in the council’s efforts to administer overpayments, together with a determination to improve performance.
Good practices enabled the council to recover 16 per cent of outstanding overpayment debts in the first quarter of 2004/05 alone.
However, the Council did not always use the correct effective date when calculating overpayments, and some claims could have been suspended more promptly to limit overpayments. Decision letters to benefit customers need to be improved as they did not always indicate when overpayments were recoverable.
BFI is an independent unit within the Department for Work and Pensions that reports directly to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the standard of benefit administration and counter-fraud activity.
James Plaskitt, Benefits Minister, announced the publication of the report in a written ministerial statement.
Notes to Editors
- Each BFI inspection report is considered by the Secretary of State who decides whether any further action is appropriate. The Secretary of State has powers to issue directions to a local authority to secure acceptable or minimum standards in performance.
- Media copies of the BFI inspection report can be obtained from the Department for Work and Pensions Press Office on 020 7238 0766.
- All BFI inspection reports can be found on the BFI website – www.bfi.gov.uk.
Department for Work and Pensions Press enquiries: 020 7238 0766
BFI Press enquiries: 01423 83 2982
Out of Hours: 07659 108 883
Public enquiries: 020 7712 2171
Website: www.dwp.gov.uk