AvivaJan 24 2017

Aviva defrauded for 10 years by OAP

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Aviva defrauded for 10 years by OAP

A woman who claimed her partner’s annuity for almost a decade after his death has been given a suspended 10 month prison sentence at Bournemouth Crown Court.

Janet Hill of  Poole, failed to tell Aviva Insurance that partner Gerald Billington had died and instead claimed £83,824 between October 2006 and March 2016.

The court heard that she submitted a number of documents with forged signatures to obtain continued payment of the money.

In one instance, two years after Mr Billington died, Hill, now 78, changed his address from a property in Wolverhampton to her new home in Poole.

The pension was paid into a Lloyds Bank account solely in Mr Billington’s name. It was withdrawn in cash and cheques.

Aviva only uncovered the deception when it received a letter from HMRC last year detailing the date of Mr Billington’s death.

Hill pleaded in mitigation that she had turned to the pension pot to compensate for the £10,000 she had loaned her partner to buy a car 

Hill, who previously worked as a draughtswoman, admitted a single count of theft. She was previously of good character.

In sentencing the defendant, Judge Brian Forster QC said: “She’s been living in a dream.”

Aviva said it could not comment on any civil action it is taking against the defendant.