Hi, just looking for some advice please if possible. I received a letter from DWP on saturday with the title "about the £xxx owed" they then stated we have contacted you about paying this money back and you must make a payment by 01/09/2012. Nowehere in the letter does it state when the amount owed relates too. I have just contacted them via telephone and they have stated that the amount owed relates to a social fund loan i received in 2001. I have been in the same employment since September 2001 and i do not recall receiving such a loan, that is not to say that i didn't receive any loan from them because i did but it was way before 2001 when i was unemployed but was under the impression it had been paid back as it was taken from my benefits. I queried with them that even if i did have a loan in 2001 which i am almost certain i did not why they are contacting me now almost 11 years later. They stated to me that they have tried to contact me on several occassions via letter, this i know is not true as i have been in the same property the whole time and never once received a single letter relating to this alleged amount and i told them maybe one letter may go astray in the mail but certainly not several!! Any advice on what to do here? even if i did owe the money from back in 2001 are they still able to chase me for this 11 years later???? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Many thanks

You could always ask them for more information because you have no recollection of having had the loan.

As for paying it back, that's completely up to you as the alleged debt is so old they cannot take any enforcement as it's Statute Barred as far as that goes, although they can deduct monies from future benefits.

Hi, sorry to hijack, but I have exactly the same problem. Debt is statute barred, and I don't intend to receive any means tested benefits in the near future.

If it's simply going to come out of my pension, I'm quite happy, but will they add charges/interest, and should I write to them to tell them it's statute barred?

Thread moved.

Read this thread especially post 12

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?358252-DWP-chasing-overpayment-from-1998