UC Review Advice

mwesty

Hi guys,

Thanks in advance for advice….

Have had a review call and got to send my bank statements in, I’m fine with this but have a question as it looks awful as a statement.
So my income on 1 month is

PAID IN £26k

PAID OUT £24K

However my balance never went above £6k in that month and also after going through it it’s my gambling that gets me through.
So with the gambling ins and outs it accounts for £22k. But it’s hard to explain but for example

l have bet £100 so outgoing

won £400 withdrew

And then used that £300 to bet through the day, so the ins and out just in that day comes to £1200 but I’ve only actually deposited £100 and then played around with the £400 but on my statement says I have £1200 outgoing ??

How will they access this over the month as l have probably only bet £500 all month but it showing as £22k paid in and out ?

Emilee

I know UC reviews can feel really worrying, but this is a pretty routine review. They commonly ask for a few months of bank statements and then have a call just to make sure everything on the claim is correct and up to date, it doesn’t automatically mean they think you’ve done anything wrong.

They’re mainly checking things like savings levels or undeclared income, not judging how you spend your money. In terms of balance they look at the amount that was in your account on the last day of each assessment period, which it sounds like was never over £6,000.

As long as you provide the documents they’ve asked for and attend the call, it’s usually just an administrative process and your payments shouldn’t be affected. They may call to discuss the incomings and outgoings but you can explain what you have said here.

Also, and I'm saying this with no judgement at all, spending around £22,000 a month on gambling is quite a significant amount, and might be a sign you have some trouble in this area. If you ever feel out of control there are some amazing services available like GamCare.

Good luck with your UC review.

TheManFromLondon

@Emilee I think you’ve misunderstood the figures.

The OP didn’t spend £22,000 gambling. That £22k is transaction turnover, not deposits or losses.

If someone deposits £100, wins £400, and then reuses that £400 across multiple bets in the same day, the bank statement can easily show £1,200+ in ins and outs. But it’s still the same original money being recycled. It’s not £1,200 of fresh deposits.

Across the whole month, the OP said they likely deposited around £500 total. The £22k figure is just cumulative movement of the same funds going back and forth.

It’s like accusing someone of eating £10,000 worth of food because you added up every supermarket transaction across the month, ignoring the fact they were cooking with the same groceries repeatedly.

Turnover isn’t the same as spend.

Your reply is what the OP afraid the UC review may see as concern, but they wont, they will understand what goes on here, its all ok.

Emilee

In accounting terms that's technically correct.

However, the initial output may only have been £100, but if you win £400 and spend that £400 gambling again, you are still spending £400 gambling (plus your £100 initial outlay).

I suppose my concern is more about the mindset behind it. When winnings start to feel like “not really your money,” it can make it easier to justify continuing to gamble. Even if the numbers add up on paper, the psychological framing can still matter.

Gambling transactions of over £22,000 in a month speaks to a potential issue, even if the initial outlay was only £1.

Treating winnings as separate from our own finances can sometimes blur the reality of risk, and that’s where people can unintentionally slide into unhealthy patterns.

Emilee

Just to add; I already addressed the UC concern, as long as their account was not over £6,000 at any time (particularly the last day of the assessment period) then it should not cause any issues with their UC review or future payments.