Claimants in receipt of income-based benefits need to be aware that if they dispose of capital by whatever means, which includes passing money to a third-party eg relatives for retention to retain or increase their benefit entitlement, can quite easily be identified by the DWP using the generalised matching service which hold details with HMRC of the amount of interest accrued in the bank account(s) of both the donor and the recipient.
If it can be established that a claimant has disposed of income/capital as previously mentioned, they will be deemed to still possess notional income and/or capital, and a failure to disclose the correct amount could result in a substantial overpayment, or worse still, a prosecution for suspected fraud.
If fraud is suspected, under the terms of the Fraud Act 2001 if there is a possibility of fraudulent activity on a benefit claim, designated officers from the DWP Counter Fraud Section can gain unfettered access to all the relevant bank accounts, in the course of their enquiries.
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems 
