National Fraud Initiative Notice for Tenants

Following a recent report by the Northern Ireland Audit Office, organisations who receive public monies are encouraged to take part in a National Fraud Initiative to prevent and detect fraud. Helm Housing is committed to tackling Fraud and the Board of Management has agreed that we will be participating in an exercise to promote the proper spending of public money.

We are required to protect the public funds we administer. We may share information provided to us with other bodies responsible for auditing or administering public funds in order to prevent and detect fraud.

The Comptroller and Auditor General at the Northern Ireland Audit Office currently requires us to participate in his anti-fraud initiative. For this initiative, we are providing details of individual tenancies so that they can be compared to information provided by other public bodies. This will ensure, for example, that no pensions are being paid to persons who are deceased or no longer entitled and that occupational pension income is being declared when housing benefit is applied for.

Sometimes wrong payments are made because of a genuine error. Previous exercises have uncovered instances of elderly tenants receiving too little pension, resulting in the payments to pensioners being increased. These exercises, therefore, help ensure the best use of public funds.

You do not need to respond to this notice. However, you may be contacted again in the future if the data we hold suggests there are mismatches with data held with other public bodies. Further information is also available by emailing us, and details of the National Fraud Initiative are set out in the Northern Ireland Audit Offices website, www.niauditoffice.gov.uk.

The use of data by the Comptroller and Auditor General in a data matching exercise is carried out with statutory authority. It does not require the consent of the individuals concerned under the Data Protection Act 1998.

Data matching by the Comptroller and Auditor General is subject to a Code of Practice. This may be found at www.niauditoffice.gov.uk.

For further information on the Comptroller and Auditor Generals legal powers and the reasons why he matches particular information are available on the NIAO website at www.niauditoffice.gov.uk. 

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