LANCASHIRE residents who made a Universal Credit claim at the onset of the pandemic are being warned that they might now have to provide proof that they were entitled to it – and urged to watch out for attempts by benefits assessors to contact them. Just over 60,000 people in the county applied for Universal Credit between March and May 2020, amid a nationwide surge in demand for financial support as the Covid crisis struck. At the time, the usual process of verifying claims for the benefit – which involves presenting corroborating evidence of identity and personal circumstances – was suspended because applicants were unable to produce the necessary documentation in person at a Job Centre.
Updated
Tuesday, 4th May 2021, 7:30 pm
More than 2,100 people in the area served by the town s Job Centre applied for Universal Credit between March and May 2020, amid a nationwide surge in demand for financial support as the Covid crisis struck. Across the Lancaster district as a whole, Universal Credit claims increased by almost 80 percent over the same period.
At the time, the usual process of verifying applications for the benefit - which involves presenting corroborating evidence of identity and personal circumstances - was suspended because claimants were unable to produce the necessary documentation in person at a Job Centre.
It was replaced by a system called Trust and Protect, which allowed the applications to proceed without the normal confirmatory checks. However, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has now set up a team tasked with examining all claims made under this fast-track process since last spring.