FRAUD COST COUNCILS £135M, REPORT FINDS

FIRST PUBLISHED BY: THE GUARDIAN

NEARLY 120,000 FRAUDS AGAINST LOCAL AUTHORITIES IN ENGLAND LAST YEAR WITH MORE THAN HALF RELATING TO HOUSING OR COUNCIL TAX

Tenancy fraud has the potential to do the most damage, the Audit Commission survey found. Councils in England lost £135m through nearly 120,000 incidents of frauds last year, a spending watchdog said today. Scams involving the 25% single occupancy Council Tax discount cost authorities £90m alone after a "sharp increase" in claims, the soon-to-be abolished Audit Commission said. 

It survey of councils also found more than 4,000 fraudulent uses of disabled blue badge parking permits. The commission – one of scores of public bodies being scrapped by the government defended its work and warned that significant council staff cuts could weaken local authority controls. Next year's "valuable" fraud survey would be the last, it said. 

Other scams reported were student council-tax discounts claimed using fake colleges and addresses, some of which turned out to be high street shops and restaurants. About 50,000 properties worth £2bn had been illegally sublet or occupied, while Birmingham city council uncovered £5.8m of benefit overpayments. The survey, called Protecting the Public Purse, revealed that false benefit claims were the most common fraud against local authorities. It reported 63,000 housing and Council Tax benefit cases, amounting to a loss of £99m. But it warned that tenancy fraud, where people live in council houses to which they are not entitled or illegally sublet them, could do the most damage.

The north-west had the highest proportion of fraud – 19.6% of the total. London was next, with 18.8%. The south-west and north-east had the lowest, with 6.5% each. The survey concluded: "With the recently announced abolition of the Audit Commission, our detected fraud survey for local government and the publication of the results will cease. "The survey provides valuable information about the performance of local government in tackling fraud. "It also helps to identify emerging fraud risks and provides an early warning system for counter-fraud staff."

The communities and local government secretary, Eric Pickles, announced in August that the commission was being disbanded, saying it had "lost its way".

READ WHAT: ERIC PICKLES ‘SECRETARY OF STATE’ SAYS ABOUT OVER-CHARGED COUNCIL TAX 

ARE YOU PAYING TOO MUCH COUNCIL TAX - CHECK HERE?