New powers
Recent laws have introduced wide-ranging powers to help us tackle the problem of benefit fraud. As a result, our investigators are more thorough and we have tough new measures to confiscate assets gained through crime. This means we have greater powers to identify and prosecute offenders and keep public funds safe. All these measures send a clear message to people thinking about committing fraud that crime does not pay.
- The Social Security Fraud Act (Northern Ireland) 2001 (known as the Fraud Act) gave officers from the Department for Social Development and benefit agencies powers to obtain information from housing organisations about their customers, to help fight fraud. These powers are controlled by the Code of Practice on Obtaining Information.
- The Department for Social Development has registered to use powers available under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. Their accredited financial investigators can carry out financial investigations and apply for assets which have been obtained through crime to be confiscated.