It is our mission. . .
To promote and maintain the integrity of the Unemployment Insurance Program through the prevention, early detection, investigation, enforcement and recovery of improper unemployment insurance benefits.
| MANDATORY CLAIMANT FRAUD PENALTY |
Claimant Fraud Awareness (Video) Recently passed federal and state laws require mandatory penalties for unemployment insurance claimants who commit fraud. In addition to any other repayments and penalties, those committing fraud in Ohio also must pay a penalty equal to 25 percent of the benefits obtained fraudulently. The penalty applies to fraud committed during the initial application or in any subsequent weeks. The most common – and avoidable – overpayments occur when claimants return to work and fail to report it on their weekly claims.
Every week, claimants are asked: “Did you work or were you self-employed during the week being claimed?” If you worked but will be paid at a later date, you still must answer “yes” and provide the earnings for that week. Claimants who intentionally withhold information, or provide false information, in an effort to collect benefits have committed fraud. Ohio law calls it “fraudulent misrepresentation,” and the penalties include: - Repayment of all benefits paid in error
- Withholding unpaid amounts from future benefits
- Ineligibility for two future allowable weeks of benefits for each fraudulent misrepresentation
Effective October 21, 2013, all claimants found to have committed fraudulent misrepresentation will be charged a 25 percent penalty on all benefits paid as a result. For additional information about the fraud penalty click on the link below. https://jfs.ohio.gov/factsheets/uiClaimantFraudPenalty.stm
Ohio's BPC is one of the most active groups of its kind in the nation. Those who flagrantly commit fraud are criminally prosecuted. All convictions require full repayment of unlawfully obtained benefits and may result in probation or possible jail time. In the past 12 months there were 19 successful convictions and court ordered restitution was $148,842.00.
Fraud overpayments not paid in full are turned over to the Ohio Attorney General's Office for collection. The Attorney General's Office aggressively pursues repayment and uses a wide spectrum of legal options. Additionally, any unpaid balances are subject to interception of federal and state income tax refunds. Please properly report work and earnings on your weekly claims. If you believe you may have incorrectly reported work and/or earnings, contact your assigned processing center or call 1-877-644-6562, to speak with a customer service representative. In the last 12 months, Ohio's Benefit Payment Control section identified more than $19,520,344.00 in fraudulent, overpaid benefits.
Any suspected fraud should be reported by calling the toll-free hotline at 1-800-686-1555 (Option 1), by faxing the information to 1-614-752-4808, or by clicking on any REPORT FRAUD link on this website. |