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

3 results

8 Conclusion

6th Report - DWP Customer Service …

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

DWP also told us that the difference in performance between in-house and outsourced lines reflected the type of work they handled. It said that it used outsourced providers to deal with simpler transactions and calls, while its in-house lines dealt … Read more

HM Treasury

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27 Conclusion Not Addressed

6th Report - DWP Customer Service …

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

Many customers contact DWP by telephone when they need to report a change of circumstances.54 However, a significant proportion of calls to DWP go unanswered. In 2023–24, DWP answered 66% of calls to its in–house lines, after taking account of … Read more

Government Response

The government's response discusses underpayments, unfulfilled eligibility, and the Health Transformation Programme, but does not address the committee's specific observation regarding the proportion of unanswered calls to DWP's in-house lines.

HM Treasury

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34 Conclusion Not Addressed

6th Report - DWP Customer Service …

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

DWP also highlighted the importance of access to data, particularly because one of the big areas of UC overpayments related to people who had savings that they did not tell DWP about. It said that some of the powers in … Read more

Government Response

The government agrees and states the recommendation is implemented, but its response details increased funding and staff for general counter-fraud activities and Targeted Case Reviews, without specifically addressing the committee's observation regarding powers in the planned Fraud, Error and Debt Bill to access bank data about Universal Credit claimants' savings.

HM Treasury

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Government Response AI assessment · 37 of 7 classified

Accepted 30

Acknowledged 1

Not Addressed 2

Rejected 4

Total 7 recs + 31 conclusions

Correspondence 4 letters

4 Feb 2025 To committee Letter from the Senior Responsible Owner at Universal Credit relating to an update on the oral evidence session held on 05 December 2024 about judicial review/TP/AR3 and AB&F v SSWP, 28 January 2025

Parliament page

9 Jan 2025 To committee Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to DWP Customer Service oral evidence session held on 05 December 2024, 23 December 2024

Parliament page

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

Parliament page

16 Dec 2024 From committee Letter to the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to Pension Credits processing delays following Committee’s inquiry, 10 December 2024

Parliament page