A mother who continued to cash her deceased stepfather's state pension for three years to fuel a 30-year gambling addiction has been spared jail. Lucy Eyre, 51, pocketed more than £58,000 in pension and Personal Independence Payments (PIP) after failing to report the death of retired nurse Bob Byast to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
The Fraud
The scam began after Mr Byast, who was in his 70s, died in May 2021. Eyre, a recruitment consultant from Knutsford, Cheshire, did not notify the DWP, allowing payments to continue flowing into his bank account. She then transferred the money to her own accounts, often on the same day. The stolen funds included winter fuel payments and Christmas bonuses.
Prosecutor Sarah Badrawy told Chester Crown Court: 'The defendant was Mr Byast's next of kin but did not report his death to the DWP... Records show that later the same day, or a few days after it was received into Mr Byast's account, money was then transferred to one of the defendant's bank accounts.' The total overpayment amounted to £58,095.87 over three years, comprising £29,959.80 from the state pension and £26,606.07 from PIP, plus £1,500 from bonuses and winter fuel allowance.
Gambling Addiction
The court heard that Eyre developed a severe gambling habit after playing bingo in her 20s. She squandered the stolen money in online casinos before being caught in 2024 following an anonymous tip-off. Defence barrister John Bottomley said: 'The defendant was in the grip of a powerful gambling addiction which blinkered her. She started gambling 30 years ago in the bingo hall but it then escalated during a period of acute grief when she lost her mother, her natural father, and her stepfather within a close period.'
Bottomley added that the money was not spent on luxuries: 'It has not provided her with holidays in the Maldives, or designer handbags... What you have is a woman at night on the phone addicted to gambling and those funds have fed that addiction.'
Sentence
Eyre faced up to four years in prison under sentencing guidelines after admitting cheating the public revenue. However, Judge Michael Leeming imposed a 21-month custodial sentence suspended for two years, citing her caring responsibilities for her 18-year-old daughter, who has Down syndrome and additional needs. He said: 'The defendant's care and dedication to her daughter has been attested to by many people and she will significantly suffer if her mother is taken into custody.'
Eyre was also ordered to complete 250 hours of unpaid work, 10 rehabilitation activity days, and a 12-month mental health treatment requirement. Although she offered to repay the full amount at £100 per month—which would take nearly 60 years—no compensation order was made, as the judge feared it might tempt her to reoffend. Currently, she has a county court judgment for a £5,000 debt and pays £800 in rent due to arrears.
Judge Leeming told her: 'This was greed, not need, that motivated your offending... You also should have thought about your daughter before you started behaving in this way.' He acknowledged her efforts to address her addiction, adding: 'Seemingly you are prepared to offer £100 a month to pay back £58,000 but that would take literally decades... I am conscious that a compensation order should not provide a temptation to offend further.'
