The House of Commons Work and Pensions Select Committee report on Safeguarding Vulnerable Claimants has been published.
Jesse Nicholls provided evidence to the Committee, addressing issues including how the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) supports vulnerable benefit claimants, systemic issues and concerns in the Department’s approach, whether its approach to safeguarding needs to change, and the deficiencies and inadequacies in the DWP’s investigation and learning processes following deaths and incidents of serious harm. Jesse has acted for the families of a number of vulnerable benefits claimants who have died following termination of their benefits and related processes within the DWP.
The Committee’s report offers a detailed critique of the DWP’s existing practices, noting that many deaths of vulnerable claimants have occurred which the DWP could have prevented, and that the DWP’s current approach to safeguarding is deficient, incoherent and lacks direction. The report finds that the deficiencies in protecting vulnerable claimants have stemmed from the culture within the DWP, which requires deep-rooted change. The Committee therefore calls for the introduction of a statutory safeguarding duty, as well as making other recommendations for improvements to protect some of the most vulnerable in society.