Employee Caught Using Council Van To Do Private Work
Resigned before disciplinary action could be taken
Vehicle shown is not the one that was used in this case and is for illustration only
July 30, 2024
A Hammersmith and Fulham Council employee was caught doing private work after a member of the public spotted their branded van parked at an address in Ealing.
A report details how an area supervisor was sent to the property after the alarm had been raised, where they discovered the employee had been undertaking a private job.
The ‘operative’ took sick leave before they could be suspended, though a subsequent investigation found the van had been driven to five different addresses outside of Hammersmith and Fulham during working hours. Before it could be concluded, the employee resigned.
According to the report: “Despite the resignation, the Council still considers disciplinary action in cases of potential misconduct. In this situation, the cost of further investigations and the impact on senior officers led to the decision not to proceed, and the resignation was accepted.”
The Corporate Anti-Fraud Service (CAFS) report, to be presented to the council’s Audit Committee on Wednesday (July 31), provides a run-through of all of the fraud-related activity attempted or committed against Hammersmith and Fulham in 2023/24.
In total, 235 ‘positive outcomes’ are recorded for the financial year, representing a notional value of more than £680,000.
A second instance of potential employee fraud is also referenced in the paper, relating to an agency worker. Officers describe how a manager was notified of rumours that the individual, despite having been hired in August 2023, was also working elsewhere.
They wrote: “CAFS was tasked to investigate the concerns, and these enquiries revealed that the employee had also been working for another London council since March 2023, but they should have disclosed this information when they joined LBHF.
“Supported by the evidence obtained, the team manager undertook a fact-finding interview with the employee per the Council’s policy, but the employee terminated their position with immediate effect.”
Officers also detailed items including housing fraud, writing how 18 properties being misused were recovered for the council in 2023/24. They added a further six cases have been concluded and are awaiting eviction, with 16 others due to be heard in court.
Ben Lynch - Local Democracy Reporter