Worried About Forgotten Savings and Reporting to DWP

Hi everyone,

I’m feeling extremely anxious about a situation with my benefits and would really appreciate any advice or insight.

Here’s the background:

I’ve been receiving DLA for my disabled son, along with Disabled Child Tax Credits and Carer’s Allowance for the past 10 years.
I transitioned to Universal Credit (UC) in September 2023. Prior to this, I believe the benefits I was receiving weren’t means-tested, and at some point in the past, I did have savings above the threshold. Is that correct? I am just unsure in anything right now.
Under UC, I understand that savings above £16,000 are considered, but savings below that are ignored when calculating eligibility. After updating my savings post-transition, I now qualify for a UC top-up (my son is now on PIP).

The Issue:
At my recent DWP appointment, I was asked to provide bank statements for all accounts, even those with negligible amounts, which got me thinking about my old accounts from 15–20 years ago. Back then, I spread my money across a few banks, chasing better interest rates. Over time, I consolidated my accounts and believed I had moved everything into my current account.

However, after that appointment, I realised that I couldn’t guarantee I had disclosed all accounts. I wrote to UC explaining this and asked for more time to check my banking history, as I moved house long time ago and didn’t always update my address for accounts I thought were negligible.

I used My Lost Account to check for dormant accounts, and it turns out I do have some:

A dormant account with under £1 that hasn’t been active for over 15 years.
An ISA with £3,600, which I had completely forgotten about. This ISA was opened 17 years ago with a building society, and I’ve had no contact with it since. I believe I forgot about it partly because it didn’t have online access, and I was also overwhelmed as a single parent caring for my severely disabled child.

What I’m Doing Now:
I am preparing to report this to UC but am very anxious about what might happen. I am kicking myself for forgetting about the ISA, but I genuinely had no intent to deceive. I believe it’s in my favour that:

I did not receive any means-tested benefits during the time I held these savings.
I am reporting this myself, albeit late, and want to fully cooperate.

My Questions:

What are the possible outcomes of reporting these savings now?
Given that I wasn’t on means-tested benefits previously, will this mitigate the situation?
Is there anything I can do to further show that this was an honest mistake and not intentional?
How serious might this be, and what can I expect when I inform the DWP?
Would the DWP need to investigate further, and if so, what might they investigate?

I’m feeling extremely anxious and would appreciate any guidance or reassurance from anyone who has been in a similar situation.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this.