§ Mr. FieldTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what steps he has taken to ensure that giro cheques cashed in shops offering to cash cheques on the spot are being legitimately encashed by claimants. [82632]
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§ Mr. TimmsThe administration of benefits is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, Peter Mathison. I have asked him to reply to my right hon. Friend.
Letter from Alexis Cleveland to Mr. Frank Field dated 4 May 1999:
The Secretary of State for Social Security has asked Peter Mathison to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what moves he has taken to ensure that giros cashed in shops offering to cash cheques on the spot are being legitimately encashed by claimants. As Mr. Mathison is away from the office on leave, I am replying.Current banking law allows cheque shops to exchange giros for cash and clear them through their own bank account.The Benefits Agency is aware of the risks this poses to its girocheques and is taking steps within the legislation to minimise the problems. For instance, the Benefits Agency has worked closely with the British Cheque Cashers Association (BCCA) and is establishing a formal memorandum of understanding with them to improve cooperation between our organisations. The BCCA is a trade association for cheques shops with over six hundred members which promotes a code of practice setting out various security measures to be observed. At local level there are examples of good liaison between individual cheque shops and BA fraud investigation teams.In addition the Benefits Agency is currently reviewing the end-to-end payment process to identify the areas of risk in order to plan further security improvements.I hope you find this reply helpful.