THERE HAS been a dramatic rise in the number of reports being made by members of the public who allege social welfare fraud by neighbours and acquaintances, it has emerged.
In January and February, 522 tip-offs – which can be made anonymously – were given to the welfare fraud office of the Department of Social and Family Affairs, up from 109 in the same period last year.
“This is an astonishing 480 per cent increase,” Minister for Social and Family Affairs Mary Hanafin said, “and shows that people don’t want their money wasted.”
More than 250 of the reports were made about people who, the informant believed, are claiming benefits while working; while 114 were for alleged breaches of the cohabitation single-mother rules. Just 62 complaints were made about people who may be claiming benefits while living outside the State, the Minister told The Irish Timeslast night.
The full number of complaints being made is not being reflected in the figures, since others are coming directly to social welfare counter staff, or to her personally.
“Each and every one is investigated.
“Not all of them are correct. In some cases, it is shown that there isn’t a problem, but we follow up on every one of them,” she said.
The rising numbers reflect a changing culture in Ireland to rule breaches: “People are not prepared to stand aside in the way that might have happened before,” she went on.
The numbers “started to rocket” in the last three months of last year.
Just 604 complaints were made in the whole of 2007, but it rose to 1,044 last year, “and most of that came in the last three months”.
People have been encouraged to make complaints by the anonymous report line operated by the department’s Carrick-on-Shannon-based Central Control Section.
“A lot of people had not been aware that such reports could be made anonymously. They had believed that they had to give their name and addresses and they were unwilling to do that,” the Minister said.
Reports are accepted by e-mail at central.control@welfare.ie, by telephone to 01 7043000, or by post to Central Control Division, Shannon Lodge, Carrick-on-Shannon, Co Leitrim.
