Address fraud is a type of

fraud In law, fraud is intentional deception to secure unfair or unlawful gain, or to deprive a victim of a legal right. Fraud can violate civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrator to avoid the fraud or recover monetary compens ...

in which the perpetrator uses an inaccurate or fictitious address to steal money or other benefit, or to hide from authorities. 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. Laws pertaining to these types of crimes vary by location. In one form of address fraud, the perpetrator uses a former address as their current address to receive mail by deliberately failing to report a
address change
and using the old address on legal documents. In another form, a person misrepresents a communal mail box at their home as their exclusive address to take advantage of benefits available to others in the home.

Motives for address fraud

The crime is often associated with

identity theft Identity theft occurs when someone uses another person's personal identifying information, like their name, identifying number, or credit card number, without their permission, to commit fraud or other crimes. The term ''identity theft'' was co ...

, taking place in about one-third of identity theft cases. Address fraud has been committed by parents attempting to get their children into a

public school Public school may refer to: * State school (known as a public school in many countries), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government * Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging independent schools in England an ...

in a jurisdiction other than where they live. Public school systems generally require that students live in the municipality the school serves, and giving false information to gain admission is a crime. People have used address fraud to vote in a jurisdiction other than their own. A notable example is

Ann Coulter Ann Hart Coulter (; born December 8, 1961) is an American conservative media pundit, author, syndicated columnist, and lawyer. She became known as a media pundit in the late 1990s, appearing in print and on cable news as an outspoken critic of ...

, who was investigated for voting in the wrong precinct. Some drivers commit address fraud to take advantage of lenient laws in a jurisdiction they don't live in. For example, a person may not qualify for a driver's license in their own state, but may qualify in another. Most states require that new residents get a state driver's license within a certain time of establishing residency—for example, 60 days in Illinois. Not having a local state license is an additional offense in the event of a traffic violation. Some wealthy people set up an official address at a low rent location in a low tax jurisdiction to avoid higher taxes where they actually live. They live most of the time in their true home, but don't pay taxes there. People with

bench warrant An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by a judge or magistrate on behalf of the state, which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual, or the search and seizure of an individual's property. Canada Arrest warrants are issued by a ju ...

s also use an old address to evade authorities.

External links

Truth About KBC 2023

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Address Fraud Fraud