'HMRC stopped my child benefit after going on holiday'

"I felt like a criminal, they accused me of not bringing my child back into the country,"

"I had no warning that they were stopping child benefit. I'm a British citizen who has never lived abroad and surely there would be a welfare issue if I had left my child in Cyprus?"

"I was being accused of not bringing my child back into the country and then I was accused of having money for a child that I hadn't got."

More than 23,000 families were targeted by a government crackdown that compared HMRC records with Home Office international travel data, resulting in wrongful suspension of child benefit payments. Ellen and Kevin Edwards had payments stopped after a one-week holiday despite passport stamps and an e-gate scan proving their son's return. HM Revenue & Customs apologised to those incorrectly targeted and reinstated payments for some families. The system generally disqualifies claimants outside the UK for more than eight weeks unless exceptional circumstances apply. Decisions can now be challenged before payments are stopped following the errors and public concern.

Read at www.bbc.com