Address fraud

Address fraud is a type of fraud in which the perpetrator uses an inaccurate or fictitious address in order to gain money or some other benefit or service to which s/he is not legally entitled, to commit some form of theft, or to hide one's location from authorities.[1] The crime may involve stating one's address as a place where s/he never lived, or continuing to use a previous address where one no longer lives as one's own.[2][3] Laws pertaining to these types of crimes vary by location.

One form of address fraud involves using one's old address as a current address to receive mail. It is committing by deliberately failing to report an address change and using the old address on legal documents.[4]

Another involves the representation of a communal mail box as one's own address where one resides in order to take advantage of benefits available to those residing in its location.[5]

Motives for address fraud

The crime is often associated with identity theft, taking place in about one-third of identity theft cases.[6]

Address fraud has been committed by parents attempting to get their children into a public school in a jurisdiction other than where they live. Public school systems generally require their students to live in the municipality by which they are operated, and giving this false information in order to attend the schools constitutes this crime.[7][8]

Address fraud has also been used by those voting in a jurisdiction other than their own.[9] A notable example is that of Ann Coulter, who was investigated for voting in the wrong precinct.[10]

Some drivers commit forms of address fraud in order to take advantage of lenient laws in a jurisdiction where they do not really live. For example, one may not qualify for a driver's license in his own state, but may qualify in another. Most states require obtaining their driver's license within a certain time period—for example, 60 days in Illinois—of establishing residency. Not having a local (state) license is itself an additional offense in the event of a traffic violation in one's home state.

Some wealthy people will set up their official address at a low rent location in a low tax jurisdiction to avoid paying taxes at a higher rate in the jurisdiction where they actually live. They will continue to be present most of the time in the place where they really wish to live but not pay taxes there.

References

  1. ↑ "Error Page". financenewsonline.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2007-07-03. Retrieved 2014-12-12.
  2. ↑ "Economic slowdown fuels fraud - Business Credit News UK". creditman.biz. Retrieved 2014-12-12.
  3. ↑ "CIFAS - Welcome to Cifas". cifas.org.uk. Archived from the original on 2014-02-23. Retrieved 2014-12-12.
  4. ↑ McNally, M.M.; Newman, G.R. (2008). Perspectives on Identity Theft. Criminal Justice Press. p. 129. ISBN 9781881798811. Retrieved 2014-12-12.
  5. ↑ "Keep your vital data secret - Telegraph". telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-12-12.
  6. ↑ "Login". timesonline.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-12-12.
  7. ↑ "BBC NEWS | Education | Fraud and the school places form". news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-12-12.
  8. ↑ "Youngstown schools target address fraud". vindy.com. Retrieved 2014-12-12.
  9. ↑ "http://media.www.chicagoflame.com/media/storage/paper519/news/2004/04/06/NewsBriefs/Election.Board.Wants.Investigation.Of.Alleged.Address.Fraud-651616.shtml". media.www.chicagoflame.com. Retrieved 2014-12-12. External link in |title= (help)
  10. ↑ "Ann Coulter Voting Fraud Case Likely Will Be Turned Over to Prosecutors, Florida Elections Chief Says | Fox News". foxnews.com. Retrieved 2014-12-12.
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