Clayton Brook man had £4k in benefits paid (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Clayton Brook man had £4k in benefits paid

4:20pm Wednesday 1st February 2012 in Chorley By Chris Gee, Reporter

A man has admitted three offences of fraudulently obtaining benefits totalling more than £4,000.

Paul Yeomans, 41, of Daisy Meadow, Clayton Brook, pleaded guilty to falsely obtaining income support, housing benefit and council tax benefit in a joint prosecution brought by Chorley Council and the Department for work and Pensions (DWP).

Leyland magistrates were told that Yeomans failed to tell the council that he had started work and knowingly allowed his wife to fail to report his employment in respect of her claim for income support.

Magistrates handed Yeomans a two-year conditional discharge at a hearing on Friday.

Action is being taken to recover the overpaid housing and council tax benefit.

Coun Kevin Joyce, who oversees the council’s benefit payments, said: “This case came to light through a data matching exercise by the DWP and it’s another excellent example of us working together in bringing benefit fraud cases to court.

“When it became clear Mr Yeomans’ employment affected housing and council tax benefit, we started an investigation and found out that he was claiming money he wasn’t entitled to get.

“It is important that people who receive benefits report any changes in circumstances to the council as soon as possible otherwise, like Mr Yeomans, you may end up with a criminal record as well as a substantial amount of money to repay.”

Anyone who suspects someone of claiming benefits dishonestly can ring the fraud hotline in confidence and for free on 0800 3286340.