Hi, I recently received a letter from the DWP stating that I owe them £1400.

Make contact and pay & etc.

I called them up (Debt Management Department), because I would like more information about the debt and to resolve it.

The details escape me, but I think this relates to being caught claiming and working about 4 or 5 years ago, maybe more.

It was a brief (few week) overlap, whilst I was attempting to get on my feet (young & homeless) - so brief I'm not sure how it could ever have amounted to 1400.

I've been in work ever since, and this letter has just arrived at my mother's address.

I've got a baby on the way, so from now on I'll be starting to clear up any debts and working on my credit score.. but what I wanted from them was more information and breakdown of how that debt has been calculated.

Instead I failed the security questions with the Debt Management Department, because I wouldn't confirm my place of employment.

I didn't do that, because I don't yet know my rights. I'm in receipt of maternity pay and I don't want them bothering my employer or interfering with my lowly maternity pay, as they have threatened a Direct Earnings Attachment (to deduct payments direct from my earnings).

But I have no trust in the DWP, rightly so, and I don't trust them with that information until I know my rights.

Because of this they would not discuss anything with me, and I don't know what other department to interact with to get more information.

So quick questions are: Is "confirm your place of employment" a legitimate security question?

Do they already know my place of Employment? (I've not told the DWP)

Do they cross reference with HMRC?

Or are they trying to get my personal details in an underhanded manner?

If I'm wrong, I'll call them back and confirm my place of employment, just to proceed.

But could they be wrong? And just trying to trick me into skipping a few processes?

Thanks in advance.

Welcome to CAG

Name this Debt Management Department, is it actually the DWP or an external debt collection ?

Andy

Thread moved to the benefits forum

pop up on the DWP site and fill out their free sar.

make them prove the debt at the least

they must hold paperwork proof.

Yes fill in the DSAR and yes its a legit question - DWP will either get info from HMRC etc or they will already know due to NI Payments.

You wont get very much out of phone staff. The DEA is usually a trigger letter to get you to contact them.

Although that shouldnt really be the case.

Yes fill in the DSAR and yes its a legit question - DWP will either get info from HMRC etc or they will already know due to NI Payments.

You wont get very much out of phone staff. The DEA is usually a trigger letter to get you to contact them.

 

Although that shouldnt really be the case.

Thanks for the answers, I'll check out this DSAR.

Welcome to CAG

 

Name this Debt Management Department, is it actually the DWP or an external debt collection ?

 

 

Andy

Actually the DWP, Debt Management Department.

If I'm wrong, I'll call them back and confirm my place of employment, just to proceed.

Always communicate in writing, That way, you have a paper trail that they will have difficulty in denying. There is a freepost address for the debt management team, but I can't put my finger on it just at the moment. Have they provided you with any prepaid reply envelopes ?

If they ask for name of current employers as a security question, this seems to indicate that they have details of an employer and they are looking for you to confirm this, to see if it matches. They may have already tried to make an attachment to earnings with the employers, but if you are on maternity pay, your employers may not have agreed to this. As far as I know, debt management would have access to name and address of employers, but no details of pay. If the debtor does not make contact, they then send off a standard form to the employers to see whether they can apply attachment to earnings.

The DWP department that registered the debt, should have sent you a letter.

Suggest you visit the DWP website and send off a Data Protection subject access request. See what they come back with.

You must always always obtain proof of posting whenever you send these clowns ANYTHING even if you use their own envelopes.

It's free from the po counter.