Five reasons why DWP could stop your benefits as one in five 'not aware' of rules

New research from the Department for Work and Pension () shows claimants are not "fully knowledgeable" about when theircould be stopped.

A report published by the benefits department last week revealed under a quarter of new claimants did not know how to get Universal Credit, and one in five did not know what would happen if they did not comply with the rules. The report also revealed misconceptions about Universal Credit's taper and the work allowance, with some claimants believing that their payment would be reduced by 100% of their earnings.

Over six million people in the UK claim Universal Credit with more set to claim in the coming year as the DWP moves people off Legacy benefits. Sumi Rabindrakumar, head of policy and research at Trussell says the DWP research shows how "vital" personalised support was to claimants. Particularly for claimants facing "ongoing barriers to work".

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He said: "Trussell’s community of food banks hear every day from people too fearful to apply for support from our social security system, and who feel they cannot trust our social security and employment support systems to provide the compassionate, tailored support they need to afford the essentials and prepare for, enter and sustain work.”

“With the UK government promising a new localised model of support, it must confirm in the spending review sufficient investment to ensure announced reforms deliver accessible and trusted support for people facing significant barriers to work – particularly disabled people and people with caring responsibilities.”

It's very important to know the rules regarding the benefit you are claiming, as there are several organisations that offer support and advice to claimants. These include Citizens Advice, Turn2Us, Independent Age, and Law Centres. To help claimants, the has compiled five common reasons why your benefit payments could be temporarily reduced or even stopped altogether.

Your earnings have increased

If you’re employed, your Universal Credit can be affected and reduced depending on how much you earnings. As your income increases, your monthly payment for Universal Credit can be reduced until you earn enough to need the financial support no longer.

Under what's called the "taper rate" for every £1 you earn your payment reduces by 55p. Once you earn too much your claim will close but you should be informed about this before it happens. You can reapply if your circumstances change within six months of your last Universal Credit claim. Some people are able to earn more money while on Universal Credit due to the "work allowance" and you can earn this set amount before your benefits start to be reduced. You will qualify for the work allowance if:

• You are responsible for a child or young person
• You have a disability or health condition that affects your ability to work

If you get help with housing costs, your work allowance is currently £404 a month and if you don’t, it is £673.

You've reported a change in circumstances

The DWP pays Universal Credit based on your personal circumstances. So if certain changes happen in your life, then you will need to report them to the DWP as it might affect how much you can claim. Not all changes in circumstances will result in your Universal Credit is reduced - some may actually increase your payments. If you don't report the change straight away, your claim might be reduced or stopped.

If you provide incorrect information and deliberately fail to report changes, you are then committing benefit fraud. Changes listed online that Universal Credit expects you to tell it about include:

• Finding or finishing a job
• Having a child
• Moving in with your partner
• Starting to care for a child or disabled person
• Changing your mobile number or email address
• Moving to a new address
• Changing your bank details
• Your rent going up or down
• Changes to your health condition
• Becoming too ill to work or meet your work coach
• Changes to your earnings (only if you’re self-employed)
• Changes to your savings, investments and how much money you have
• Changes to your immigration status, if you’re not a British citizen
• You can report a change of circumstances by signing in to your Universal Credit account.

You've had an overpayment

If the DWP has paid you too much Universal Credit, the department will take back the money from your future payments. If you do not tell the DWP about the overpayment, you may be prosecuted for benefit fraud or have to pay a penalty. You can report an overpayment by signing into your Universal Credit account or calling the Universal Credit helpline.

You can try asking the DWP if they will let you not pay back the overpayment.

This is called "exercising their discretion not to recover an overpayment" but they don't have to agree to this.

You've been sanctioned

To get Universal Credit payments, you’ll need to accept an agreement called a "claimant commitment". This is a list of things you promise to do to get the payments. By agreeing, it means you prepare for and look for work if you aren't working and will increase your earnings if you are already working. If you are not showing that you are doing this by recording your job searches, or your Jobcentre work coach doesn't feel you are doing enough to get back into work, then you could be sanctioned.

Getting a sanction means your Universal Credit payment will be temporarily reduced and you will be notified of it if it happens. This will be in a letter or, if you use the digital service, posted on your Universal Credit online account and will tell you:

• Why you’ve received a sanction
• The level of sanction you’ve been given
• How long the sanction will last
• How much money will be taken away from your Universal Credit payment
• The date the sanction decision was made

There are different sanctions depending on which "conditionality group" you’re in. These groups just highlight what work-related activities you must do to get a full entitlement to Universal Credit. There are four levels for a sanction, from highest to lowest, and the sanctions can last from seven days right up to 182 days.

You owe the DWP money from a loan

If you've taken out an advance payment, hardship payment, or budgeting advance, it will be deducted from your future Universal Credit payments. That's because these are all technically loans, so they need to be paid back to the DWP.

Advance payment is money awarded to new claimants to help them cover their bills while they wait for their applications to go through. A budgeting advance is one-off payment for things like home repairs or uniform for a new job. A hardship payment is given to those who've been sanctioned and are struggling with their lower Universal Credit payment. How long you'll have to pay back these payments for depends on how much you borrowed.

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