The Law: Anti-fraud confidential hotline
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nThe DSS has launched a new freephone Business Anti-Fraud hotline (Contact: 0800 788887) enabling employees and legitimate companies to give information in confidence about firms who are using the benefits system fraudulently in a bid to cut their costs—eg, by evading NIC or using benefits to subsidise wages. Further, if Clause 61 of the Social Security Bill is enacted, unscrupulous and fraudulent directors will be made liable for NEC debts. The clause:
• Introduces the offence of "fraudulent evasion of national insurance" [see Money Matters, page 50] • Provides that directors will be personally liable for an amount in correlation to the apparent degree of guilt • Allows debts to be transferred to culpable directors or officers of the company The confidential hotline centre will vet all telephone calls, which will then be checked again by Contributions Agency staff before any investigations take place. This is to ensure that malicious calls, or those with insufficient information, are weeded out.