Hundreds of thousands of benefits claimants could be unable to register for the new Universal Credit (UC) digital service because of problems using the government’s online identity system Gov.uk Verify, according to new figures that show barely a third of UC users successfully use Verify.

The Universal Credit (UC) digital system, which is due to be introduced at all Jobcentres by the end of 2018, works on the basis that people applying for benefits will set up an account online and prove their identity electronically using Gov.uk Verify – either on their own computer or with assistance from Jobcentre staff.

But the Government Digital Service (GDS), which develops Verify, has revealed research showing that while 35% of UC users can set up a Verify account online, 30% are not able to, and the remaining 35% could use Verify, but do not.

“Further research at a job centre showed that out of 91 users, 48 needed help with the process,” according to the latest minutes from GDS meetings with the Privacy & Consumer Advisory Group (PCAG), a panel of independent identity experts who advise on Gov.uk Verify issues.

Further tests at the London Borough of Croydon showed that, even when claimants are given one-to-one support to help create a Verify user account, only one in five were able to successfully prove their identity online using the system.

“This highlighted two areas of concern – making people go to a venue where they were still unlikely to verify their identity, and the costs of the scheme,” said the minutes of the November 2017 PCAG meeting.

Verify uses publicly available data, such as passports, driving licences and credit histories, to prove that online users are who they say they are. However, since the system went live in June 2016, the majority of people attempting to register with Verify found they were unable to set up an account.