UK Inquiry Tracker

DWP Customer Service and Accounts 2023-24

Public Accounts Committee Closed Inquiry

Opened: 31 Oct 2024 Closed: 3 Apr 2025 Parliament page

In 2022-23, payments were made by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) totalling £231 billion to over 20 million people. Demand for benefits is growing, with the number of claimants rising by over two million people since 2019. The DWP uses a range of measures to monitor performance, including … Read more In 2022-23, payments were made by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) totalling £231 billion to over 20 million people. Demand for benefits is growing, with the number of claimants rising by over two million people since 2019. The DWP uses a range of measures to monitor performance, including customer satisfaction, and payment timeliness and accuracy. The DWP said in 2024 that it could not commit to substantially reducing fraud and error levels, based on its current plans. In its report on the DWP’s 2023-24 Annual Report and Accounts, the DWP told the National Audit Office (NAO) that UC fraud and error levels were no longer expected to return to pre-pandemic levels. It said that this was due to an increasing propensity for fraud in society, with a 5% increase in fraudulent behaviour each year assumed in its forecasting. The report saw £9.7bn in estimated benefit overpayments due to fraud and error – the highest ever level in cash terms. The Comptroller and Auditor General has qualified his audit opinion of the 2023-24 accounts because of the material level of fraud and error in benefit expenditure. The NAO’s 2024 report on DWP’s customer service noted that the DWP’s resources, ability to process claims and provide good customer service are under pressure in the wake of the pandemic, subsequent cost-of-living pressures and an increase in demand for benefits. The Committee has long scrutinised the delivery of Universal Credit (UC), raising the alarm in April 2024 that vulnerable people risked losing their benefits as legacy claimants transitioned over to UC. It has also recently scrutinised customer service at HM Revenue & Customs, which it found in 2024 was at an all-time low. Based on the two NAO reports, the Committee will take evidence from senior DWP officials, with likely focuses including: - Fraud and error levels; - DWP’s monitoring of customer service; - Quality of service. Please note the Committee is unable to consider or assist with individual cases. If you need help with an individual problem you are having, you may wish to contact your constituency MP . If you have evidence on these issues please submit it here by 23:59 on Friday 22 November 2024. Show less

7 Recommendations

31 Conclusions

1 Report

1 Oral session

4 Letters

1 Event

Activity timeline 8 events

6 May
2025

Report published

Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Sixth report from Session 2024-25

4 Feb
2025

Correspondence

Letter from the Senior Responsible Owner at Universal Credit relating to an update on the oral evidence session held on 05 December 2024 ab…

31 Jan
2025

Report published

6th Report - DWP Customer Service and Accounts 2023-24

9 Jan
2025

Correspondence

Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to DWP Customer Service oral evidence session held on …

19 Dec
2024

Correspondence

Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to Pension Credit processing, 18 December 2024

16 Dec
2024

Correspondence

Letter to the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to Pension Credits processing delays following Committee…

5 Dec
2024

Oral evidence

Oral evidence session

5 Dec
2024

Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House

Committee event

Oral evidence sessions 1 session

5 Dec 2024

View on parliament.uk

Amanda Reynolds · Department for Work & Pensions Neil Couling CB CBE · DWP Services and Fraud Sir Peter Schofield KCB · Department for Work and Pensions

Reports 1 report · click to expand

Title	HC No.	Published	Items	Response
6th Report - DWP Customer Service and Accounts 2023-24	HC 354	31 Jan 2025	38	Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

38 results

2 Recommendation Rejected

6th Report - DWP Customer Service …

Set out expected timelines for achieving 75% target for new PIP claims processing.

DWP processes only around half of new PIP claims on time against a target for 75% of claims to be processed within 75 working days. DWP’s performance in processing new claims on time varies significantly between benefits, with claimants of … Read more

Government Response

The government rejects the recommendation, stating it must balance speed with accuracy and risk, especially with upcoming changes from the "Pathways to Work" Green Paper. It refers to the long-term Health Transformation Programme for modernisation.

HM Treasury

DWP Customer Service and Accounts 2023-24

Activity timeline 8 events

Oral evidence sessions 1 session

Reports 1 report · click to expand

Recommendations & Conclusions

Set out expected timelines for achieving 75% target for new PIP claims processing.

Gather data to understand diverse customer experiences and act to improve support services.

Set out monitoring and mitigation strategies for cultural change risks in service modernisation.

Over £4 billion in benefit underpayments in 2023-24 increases financial hardship risks.

Set out plans to build claimant trust and simplify reporting changes of circumstances.

Set out use of additional £110 million funding for counter-fraud to reduce overpayments.

Share fairness impact assessment results for machine learning to reassure against unfair claimant treatment.

DWP customer service and benefit expenditure fraud and error examined.

Differences in call performance between in-house and outsourced DWP lines reflect query complexity.

ESA claimants moving to Universal Credit expected to see improved call waiting times.

DWP's declining timeliness in processing new benefit claims increases financial hardship

DWP's processing timeliness varies significantly, with poor performance for PIP claims

Disabled people experience significant difficulty and negative impacts from benefit application process

DWP attributes mixed claims processing timeliness to ongoing, gradual modernisation efforts

Significant improvement in PIP claim processing timeliness not expected until 2029

DWP prioritises support for vulnerable customers with trained staff and specialist leads

DWP uses AI for written vulnerability screening, plans phone system for equivalent identification

Disabled claimants require significant external support to navigate inaccessible benefit applications

DWP under-utilises customer survey data to understand experiences of diverse claimant groups

DWP's extensive Service Modernisation Programme faces significant delivery and cultural change risks

DWP faces daunting and complex challenges in modernising its services and legacy IT systems.

Cultural change represents the hardest aspect of DWP's service transformation programmes.

DWP monitors cultural change through embedding values, seeking feedback, and partner engagement.

DWP's financial statements qualified for 36th consecutive year due to material fraud and error.

Claimants received £4.2 billion less in benefits due to official error and unfulfilled eligibility.

Underpayment rates for disability benefits remain highest, often due to unreported worsening conditions.

Significant proportion of DWP customer calls remain unanswered, affecting change of circumstances.

Most underpayments stem from claimants with health conditions not reporting worsening circumstances.

DWP overpaid £9.5 billion in benefits, with fraud accounting for the majority of overpayments.

DWP's Targeted Case Reviews fell short of expected UC fraud and error savings.

DWP attributes missed Targeted Case Review savings target to a temporary 'blip'.

Government announces major funding, staff, and powers to combat DWP fraud and error.

DWP details plans for new funding to increase fraud reviews and claimant checks.

DWP seeks new Fraud Bill powers to access bank data on UC claimant savings.

DWP dissatisfied with slow reduction in UC overpayments despite forecast improvements and efforts.

DWP uses machine learning for fraud, but with limited transparency on fairness assessment.

Public Law Project warns of bias and transparency risks in DWP's machine learning for fraud.

DWP commits to further assurance on fairness of machine learning techniques for benefits.

Government Response AI assessment · 37 of 7 classified

Correspondence 4 letters