Flawed Digital Universal Credit system failing to provide aid to claimants, according to new study
The Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) has raised concerns about the digital implementation of the Universal Credit (UC) system, stating that while it can make claiming easier, it can also lead to significant problems, including breaches of rule-of-law principles and claimants being left without enough money to live on. Sophie Howes, the head of policy and research at CPAG, emphasizes the importance of getting UC right, as almost half of all children will be in households claiming UC when it's fully rolled out. She points out that the digital nature of UC can lead to claimants being left without money they are entitled to and information needed to challenge DWP decisions. One of the issues highlighted in a recent CPAG report is the UC digital system's inability to accept the verification of individual children independently in a household. This means that families can miss out on their legal entitlement to the child element of UC for all their children if there is a problem verifying just one child. The report also catalogues cases where people miss out on additional support due to an online claims process that does not identify their need. For instance, families have gone without entitlements for all children because verification paperwork is pending for one child in the digital UC system. The difficulties some claimants face in completing the digital claim form and establishing their entitlement may explain some of the abandoned claims, according to CPAG's research. In the year ending February 2023, about one third of the 2.9m UC registrations did not result in a claim being submitted, but the DWP has not provided information on why the drop-out rate is high. CPAG calls for low-cost changes to ensure digitalisation improves UC so that it's fair, in line with regulations, and capable of getting correct payments to all claimants. They suggest that the DWP should ensure digitalisation improves UC, making it a system that works for everyone, not one that rides roughshod over rule-of-law principles and leaves claimants without enough money to live on. Sophie Howes gives an example of the unacceptable situation that can arise from the current system: telling a mother of three that the computer says no to support for all of her children just because there's a bureaucratic delay in the paperwork for one child. The DWP has been urged to take steps to make the workings of UC more transparent, to address these issues and ensure that the system is working effectively for all claimants. Without such action, many families may continue to be left without the support they are entitled to, which could have a significant impact on child poverty rates in the UK.
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