Gambling could put your benefits at risk as any winnings will count towards capital which could mean your payments are reduced or even stopped. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) says winnings from gambling don’t count as earnings – but they do count as capital.
So, in short, if your winnings take your savings over £6,000 you could see Universal Credit cut or stopped, reports BirminghamLive.
A DWP spokesperson said: “Winnings obtained from gambling activity do not meet the definition of earnings within Universal Credit Regulation 52 and are not taken into account as an unearned income. Any profit made from gambling activity will only be considered within Universal Credit as part of a person’s capital.
“It is the customer’s responsibility to advise DWP of a change in their circumstances that would affect their benefit and for means-tested benefits, this includes receiving gambling winnings which increase the total capital held and impact their award.”
You could also lose some of your money to HMRC as innterest on winnings is taxable. HMRC deducts the tax and shares information with the DWP to prevent fraud.
DWP can question bank transactions and they may ask to see details of the accounts you hold at online betting websites. Matched betting – which involves people using free bets offered by bookmakers to make a profit – may be viewed by the DWP as capital but there have been cases where regular amounts have been counted as a monthly income which would then lower your benefit payments.
The DWP can also ask to see statements from other sites such as PayPal where cash can be stored.
Online gambling accounts will also be listed on your credit record because a credit check is usually carried out by each website when you open an account, in order to verify your personal details. This means DWP will be aware of all the accounts you hold when it carries out claim reviews.
There is a capital limit of £16,000 if you claim Universal Credit, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), Income Support, and Housing Benefit (if you are under State Pension age). If your capital is higher than this amount, your entitlement to benefits ends and your payments are stopped.
Any money you have that’s between £6,000 and £16,000 is treated as if it gives you a monthly income of £4.35 for each £250, or part of £250. So if you have £6,300, the first £6,000 of it will be ignored and the other £300 will be treated as giving you a monthly income of £8.70. This is then deducted from your monthly Universal Credit payment.
Those on income-based JSA, income-related ESA, Income Support and Housing Benefit lose £1 per week for every £250, or part of £250, that’s over £6,000.
For people who get Pension Credit, there is a capital limit of £10,00 before deductions are applied. Every £500 over £10,000 counts as £1 income a week. But unlike the other benefits above, there is no upper limit on the savings you can have.
For support dealing with gambling problems, you can visit online resources such as Gamcare, Gambling Therapy, Gamban and GambleAware.