Thieves take advantage of social security in a number of ways, but a trained private investigator can spot signs of social security fraud from a mile away. Today, we’ll help you understand social security fraud so that you might be able to spot the signs, too.
The most common way that people take advantage of social security benefits is to submit a false statement or claim when they are applying for benefits. For example, if someone is blind and unable to drive, he or she may be eligible for more social security benefits—if a person who is not blind claims that he or she is blind, then that would constitute fraud.
Another way that people take advantage of social security benefits is to conceal important information that needs to be reported when filing a claim. For example, if a person is collecting unemployment benefits and returns to work, that person is responsible for reporting that he or she has returned to work, so that their unemployment benefits cease. But if he or she conceals this information from the government, they are committing social security fraud.
Another very common abuse of the system is misuse of the funds by a representative payee. If the person who is meant to receive the benefits is unable to handle their own financial affairs – if they are very old or very sick, for example – the benefits may be paid out to a proxy who is responsible for getting the funds to the person receiving the benefits. If this proxy takes the money for him or herself, this misuse of benefits is fraud.
You may also find that people buy and sell fake social security cards, file for false workers’ compensation claims, or even bribe social security administration employees.
All of these misuses of the system are considered serious fraudulent acts, and if you think someone might be involved in social security fraud, the trained private investigators at Gold Shield Investigations can help you find proof to bring to the authorities.
