Guidance

Fraud and error in the benefit system: quality statement

This report assesses the quality of the fraud and error in the benefit system statistics.

• From: Department for Work and Pensions
• Published: 21 November 2013
• Last updated: 13 May 2021
  Show all updates

  1. 13 May 2021

     Revised version - published to support the latest release of the fraud and error in the benefit system statistics (also published today, 13 May 2021).

  2. 14 May 2020

     Revised versions of the documents on this page have been published to support the latest release of the fraud and error in the benefit system statistics (also published today, 14 May 2020).

  3. 9 May 2019

     Published revised versions of all documents to support the release of the 2018 to 2019 estimates (published 9 May 2019).

  4. 6 December 2018

     Published revised versions of all documents to support the release of the 2017 to 2018 estimates (published 6 December 2018). The 2 separate technical appendices have been combined into one document.

  5. 17 May 2018

     Added revised technical appendices, which have been updated in line with the 2017/18 preliminary estimates published in May 2018. Also added revised 'Uses and users of the DWP fraud and error in the benefit system statistics' and 'Quality methods', minor changes throughout.

  6. 30 November 2017

     Published a new 'Technical annex for continuously reviewed benefits'. This updates and replaces the following 3 annexes, which have been removed from the page: 'Benefits technical appendix for Income Support, Jobseeker’s Allowance and Pension Credit', 'Technical appendix for Housing Benefit' and 'Technical appendix for Universal Credit'. Also published a revised version of the 'Technical appendix for calculation of the overall overpayments and underpayments and net loss estimates' (now dated November 2017).

  7. 19 May 2017

     Revised version of 'Technical appendix for Universal Credit' with information in section 2 on Causal Link, where a review was unable to be completed. This revised version is dated May 2017.

  8. 8 December 2016

     Added revised version of 'Technical appendix for Universal Credit' with information in section 2 on Causal Link.

  9. 19 May 2016

     Published 'Technical appendix for Universal Credit'.

  10. 14 May 2015

      Added 'Technical appendix for calculation of the total gross estimates and net loss estimates'. Also published revised 'Technical appendix for Income Support, Jobseeker’s Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance and Pension Credit' and 'Technical appendix for Housing Benefit' which contain changes to methodology.

  11. 6 November 2014

      Published updated Housing Benefit technical appendix to accompany publication of final 2013 to 2014 estimates.

  12. 21 November 2013

      First published.

Documents

Quality statement: fraud and error in the benefit system statistics

Ref: ISBN 978-1-78659-331-3

HTML

Details

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) fraud and error statistics provide estimates of fraud and error for benefits administered by the DWP and local authorities.