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Forum Home  →  Discussion  →  Universal credit administration  →  Thread

Risk and Review Team; how to deal with them?

Jo_Smith
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Citizens Advice Hillingdon

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Total Posts: 325

Joined: 3 October 2018

Our team regularly assists clients whose cases end up with the Risk and Review Team. I have learned to dread hearing this name. When cases go there, they disappear as if they fell into black site rendition.

Normally these are cases of innocent mistakes, made by clients befuddled by online claiming process. Some clients submit duplicate claims- because they don’t know that their previous claim is still open, or they split up with a partner, etc etc. Last week I had a client who created a new UC account (and submitted a new claim!) because he lost his phone and now has a new one…

Sometimes there are cases of fraud or attempted fraud, mostly against clients, rather than by clients. I can count on fingers of one hand clients who had fraud allegations successfully proven against them.

Yet, when the Risk and Review Team grabs the case- bye bye payments, bye bye information exchange, bye bye transparency and bye bye accountability.
This cannot be right.

I understand that potential fraud has to be investigated- but the way it is done currently causes more harm than good.

I have submitted Social Policy and Early Warning System notes and I am sure I am not the only one who thinks this needs to be urgently addressed.

I’d appreciate any tips or suggestions on how to deal with such cases on individual basis.

Andyp5 Citizens Advice Bridport & District
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Citizens Advice Bridport & District

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Joined: 9 January 2017

Jo is this an automated screening process picking up claimants by trawling crudely for a wide range of apparent anomalies, and coming with lots of routine claim issues and getting it very wrong?

Jo_Smith
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Citizens Advice Hillingdon

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Total Posts: 325

Joined: 3 October 2018

I have no idea how they work but most likely it would be a combination of algorithms, reports from clients themselves, concerns from DWP staff. Who knows.