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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| More lie detectors to curb fraud | More lie detectors to curb fraud |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Fifteen councils across Britain are to be offered lie detectors to help catch out benefit cheats who cost taxpayers up to £400m a year. | Fifteen councils across Britain are to be offered lie detectors to help catch out benefit cheats who cost taxpayers up to £400m a year. |
| Trials of the system, which analyses speech patterns, have made savings of hundreds of thousands of pounds. | Trials of the system, which analyses speech patterns, have made savings of hundreds of thousands of pounds. |
| Seven councils have tested the technology, which is already used by the insurance industry to combat fraud. | Seven councils have tested the technology, which is already used by the insurance industry to combat fraud. |
| Critics say genuine claimants may be put off applying for help for fear of being wrongly labelled a fraudster. | Critics say genuine claimants may be put off applying for help for fear of being wrongly labelled a fraudster. |
| Further evidence | Further evidence |
| The voice-risk analyser equipment detects changes in the sound of the claimant's voice, which could indicate they are not telling the truth about their circumstances. | The voice-risk analyser equipment detects changes in the sound of the claimant's voice, which could indicate they are not telling the truth about their circumstances. |
| Someone who's a practised liar, who's deliberately defrauding the system, may very well be able to beat equipment like this Richard ExellTUC class="" href="/1/hi/magazine/6983359.stm">How do the lie detectors work? | |
| Benefits staff are then able to ask for further evidence to support any suspicious claims. | Benefits staff are then able to ask for further evidence to support any suspicious claims. |
| Harrow Council was one of the seven areas given cash to introduce the technology. | |
| A year on, it says it has saved £420,000, partly because a third of people who received a phone call admitted their personal circumstances had changed and they may not be eligible to receive benefit anymore. | |
| More than 90% of people claiming benefits were honest, but "often people changed their stories part way through the conversation" said Harrow councillor Paul Osborn. | |
| He claimed some benefit claimants realised their answers were not adding up and did not want to get prosecuted for fraud. | |
| Hesitation, repetition | |
| Fraudsters steal £400m in benefits each year in Britain. The government has deemed the lie detector system such a success it is introducing it in 15 more areas, and councils will have to compete against one another to receive the equipment. | |
| An operator sits in front of a computer, and makes phone calls to claimants. | |
| He or she asks set questions, and the screen flashes red if the software detects a change in the modulation of the voice which could indicate the claimant is not telling the truth. | |
| The important thing to understand is it flags up a risk, it doesn't prove the fraud in itself James Plaskitt | |
| Department for Work and Pensions | |
| At the same time, the operator makes a note of whether there is any hesitation, repetition or nervousness. | |
| The government claims that if it was installed everywhere the Voice Recognition Analysis equipment could save up to £30m a year in housing benefit claims alone. | |
| But critics are concerned vulnerable claimants will be put off asking for money to which they are entitled, for fear of being wrongly labelled a fraudster. | |
| National roll-out | |
| Richard Exell, of the TUC, said: "Someone who is a practised liar, who's deliberately defrauding the system, may very well be able to beat equipment like this, whereas someone who is scrupulously honest may actually be scared off claiming a benefit they are entitled to." | |
| But the government said those doing nothing wrong had nothing to fear and that the lie detector evidence was just the start of fraud investigations. | But the government said those doing nothing wrong had nothing to fear and that the lie detector evidence was just the start of fraud investigations. |
| James Plaskitt, anti-fraud minister at the Department for Work and Pensions, said: "The important thing to understand is it flags up a risk, it doesn't prove the fraud in itself. It's an important additional bit of tooling." | James Plaskitt, anti-fraud minister at the Department for Work and Pensions, said: "The important thing to understand is it flags up a risk, it doesn't prove the fraud in itself. It's an important additional bit of tooling." |
| The lie detectors are expected to be rolled out nationally, with the government claiming they will save taxpayers tens of millions of pounds a year. | The lie detectors are expected to be rolled out nationally, with the government claiming they will save taxpayers tens of millions of pounds a year. |