What to do if…
you are accused of time fraud or timesheet discrepancies at work

What to do now

1. Ask for the allegation in writing. Ask which dates and times are in question, what policy they say was breached, and whether this is an informal concern, an investigation, or a disciplinary process.
2. Ask what evidence they are relying on. Ask for the timekeeping logs, rota, shift records, manager approvals, exception reports, audit logs showing who changed what and when, witness accounts, and any CCTV or access-control material they say is relevant and can share.
3. Preserve your own records without changing them. Save copies of calendar entries, meeting invites, sent emails, call logs, tickets, CRM activity, delivery or visit notes, work photos, travel receipts, chat timestamps, and any messages approving hours or changes. Keep a dated copy outside work systems only if you can do so lawfully and without breaching confidentiality.
4. Write a short factual timeline. For each disputed date, note when you started, when you finished, breaks, where you were working, what work you did, who approved it, who may have seen you working, and any clocking or system issues.
5. Ask for the policies they are using. Request the disciplinary policy, investigation policy, timekeeping or timesheet policy, any rules about remote work or breaks, and your submitted timesheets and approvals for the period.
6. If you are invited to a disciplinary hearing, ask to be accompanied. Say in writing that you want to bring a companion and give enough notice. The usual companion choices are a fellow worker, a workplace trade union representative who is certified or trained to act as a companion, or an official employed by a trade union.
7. If it is an investigation meeting, ask whether someone can attend with you anyway. There is generally no legal right to be accompanied at a disciplinary investigation meeting, but many employers allow it and Acas describes this as good practice.
8. If records are missing or not shared, consider a narrow subject access request. You can ask for personal data about you that is relevant to the allegation, such as time records, messages about your shifts, or logs linked to your account. Keep the request limited to the dates and systems involved, and remember that some information may be withheld or redacted.
9. If you are suspended, get the terms in writing. Ask whether pay and contractual benefits continue, what restrictions apply, whether you may contact colleagues, who your contact person is, and when the suspension will be reviewed. If they suggest stopping or reducing pay, ask for the contractual and legal basis in writing before responding.
10. After any meeting, send a short confirmation email. Record the date, who attended, what was alleged, what evidence you asked for, what you were told to do or not do, and the next step.