Fraud is estimated to cost organisations 5% of their total revenue each year. For UK councils specifically, the cost of fraud is around £2.1 billion per year.
It is the perception of some that fraud against councils is a victimless crime. That is not the case. The impacts of fraud are far reaching and not always obvious.
It is in all of our interests to ensure fraud is identified and stopped at the earliest possible.
In the last 6 months, we have uncovered people on the housing waiting list with no entitlement to housing in our area, as well as those claiming single persons discount on their council tax, when they are not entitled to. We have also helped local housing providers to recover social tenancies from those illegally sub-letting, which makes more homes available for those in need.
Our counter fraud team is responsible for investigating a raft of potential frauds and dishonesty offences, including tenancy fraud, giving false information on applications and claiming single persons discount on their council tax when they are not entitled to.
Residents are encouraged to contact us confidentially if they suspect someone is committing a fraud against the council and we will investigate. Anyone considering defrauding the council should also be warned that we have robust systems in place to investigate claims of fraud.
You can report fraud in confidence to our online fraud referral or email fraud@elmbridge.gov.uk.