Research indicates that the Digital Universal Credit system frequently denies financial assistance to claimants.
In a three-year study, the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) has uncovered significant issues with the digital marketing elements of the Universal Credit (UC) benefit system. The report suggests that while the digital nature of UC has some advantages, it also leads to people being left without money they are entitled to and information they need to challenge DWP decisions.
One of the most concerning findings is that approximately one third of the 2.9 million registrations for UC did not result in a claim being submitted at all in the year ending February 2023. The DWP has yet to provide public information on why the drop-out rate is so high.
The report also highlights the fact that the online claims process does not always identify the needs of claimants, potentially causing them to miss out on additional support they are entitled to. This issue is further compounded by the fact that the UC digital system cannot verify individual children independently in a household. As a result, families may go without their entitlements for all of their children because verification paperwork is pending for just one child.
Sophie Howes, head of policy and research at CPAG, compared the situation of a mother of three missing out on support for all of her children due to a bureaucratic delay in the paperwork for one child to the computer saying 'No'. She stated that the digital UC system can ride roughshod over rule-of-law principles and leave claimants without enough money to live on.
The report further reveals that the programming and operation of the digital-by-design UC benefit does not always align with social security legislation, potentially causing claimants to experience acute hardship. The study found numerous injustices and breaches of rule-of-law principles in the operation of digital UC systems.
In response to these findings, Sophie Howes suggested that the DWP can make low-cost changes to ensure digital UC systems are capable of providing correct payments to all claimants. She emphasised the need for transparency in the workings of UC to ensure digitalisation improves UC and is fair, in line with regulations, and capable of getting correct payments to all claimants.
The charity's report also reveals the extent to which the workings of digital UC systems are opaque for claimants and researchers. The CPAG suggests that aspects of the digital claim form that make it difficult for some claimants to complete the form and establish their entitlement may explain at least some of these abandoned claims.
With approximately half of all children expected to be in households claiming UC when it's fully rolled out, it is imperative to get the system right. The CPAG's report serves as a call to action for the DWP to address these issues and ensure that the digital elements of UC are working effectively and fairly for all claimants.
