Please advise......huge Tax Credit Overpayment issue

[JPea]

I would be very grateful for some advise

 

Last year I had my third child and accordingly alerted the tax credits office. I also informed them that my babies father was staying with me as a guest, for an indefinate time. He is Australian.

I informed them that he had no income, funds and was making no contribution to the household.

 

They told me to inform them should these circumstances change. And my single claim continued with no disruption to my payments.

 

8 months later we married and I alerted the TC office immediately as I knew that due to marriage the claim would need to become a joint claim.

 

They immediately stopped my claim from April 2010 and I have been landed with an overpayment debt of nearly £6000.

 

I feel totally confused?

 

Have I done wrong?

 

JPea

[Life-Goes-On]

At a guess it's because you stated he was a "guest" not a partner so it was treated as a single claim instead of a couple.

[jadeybags]

Lots of people live together but aren't married. So I am suprised they didn't get you to change to a joint claim from the start. Speak to CAB as the fact he wasn't earning must go some way, if not all the way to reduce that overpayment you would think & maybe should have been entitled to more?

[tam65]

this sounds as though someone in the WTC office stopped your claim cos your partner is an aussie, in error. New arrivals to the UK do not qualify for WTC but you should still be eligible as a married couple. could also be a childcare issue, were you claiming childcare costs?, need a bit more detail to advise properly, I used to work there

Tam65

[tam65]

did you get a letter in April telling you why your claim was stopped?

what does the letter asking for the £6k overpayment say?

generally speaking, if the claim was stopped by them in error it should be made good in full and fully backdated.

if the claim stopped because you did not send a renewal form in then it might only get backdated 3 months.

Tam 65

[JPea]

Hi Everyone

 

Thank you so much for your responses.

 

Here is a little more information as requested.

 

There have not been any child care costs involved

 

My husband has Right of Abode in the UK and therefore no restrictions on claims, so I believe

 

 

When I intially alerted the TC office that my babies father was staying with me as a guest, at no point did they say that I would have to change my claim, they said to alert them if my circumstances changed. I wasnt sent a new claim form or anything. And they continued paying me.

 

So for 8 months I continued to be paid as a single claim with the TC office knowing that my babies father was staying with me. What baffles me is, if that was wrong why didnt they tell me to change the claim at the time?

 

Nothing changed with my financial situation.....I did and have continued to provide everything for my husband before and after we were married. He has no income, no savings and claims no benefits. So none of the financial details in my claim have ever changed.

 

Once I married, they stopped the claim for that whole period of 8 months and said I should have claimed jointly all that time......when they were already aware fully of my circumstances.

 

Presently and for the past 2 years I have been unable to work due to medical complications....I claim Employment Support Allowance. Therefore a debt of nearly £6000 is a horrifying thought.... (I worked for 22 years as a nurse prior to this and am very new to the claim system)

 

Thank you in advance for any replies

 

JPea

[JPea]

Hi tam65

 

Thank you for your message

 

When I got married at the end of last year, they stopped my single claim immediately.

 

I wrote in complaint and recieved the letter this week telling me of the overpayment. They said they cant write off the Overpayment because I didnt keep my responsibility to tell them of all my circumstances....and that my claim should have been a joint claim from the start.

 

However, I have always told them all my circumstances within a day or two of any changes.

 

I am so baffled?

 

Thanks for your interest and help with this matter

 

JPea

[bluedogx]

I think the confusion centers around the word 'guest'. People can live in the same house and be single claimants if they are not living as a couple. I think tax credits have assumed you were not living as a couple when you said he was your guest. Now you are married, they will now assume you were living as a couple - hence the overpayment.

[tam65]

JPea

To put your mind at ease the most you will have to pay will be about £2.80ish per week at the very worst, which probably will not happen.

You should have been getting Child Tax Credit since april2010 to present, this should more than cancel out the 6k overpayment, they probably owe you a few quid.

This is a simple misunderstanding due to your lack of knowledge of their rules, married/single/single+living with partner = married in HMRC rules, you didn’t read the form correctly or it was badly explained to you, whatever, no big deal. It happened all the time when I worked there about 4 years ago.

HMRC will probably just work out what you should have been paid, as a couple, less what you were paid wrongly as a single and you will probably find that they owe you some money, at the very least 3 months worth, for the time you received nothing.

Tip : be ultra nice on the phone to them and this is probably the quickest way to sort it out.

If you can’t face phoning them, like plenty folk can’t, then write a nice letter suggesting that you misread the form or were badly advised, or both, that it was a misunderstanding and could they work out what you were entitled to less what you were overpaid.

They will generally only backdate a claim 3 months if someone applies late, but in overpayment cases they will generally calculate over the whole of the claim. You should be OK here, you do not owe them 6k.

My knowledge is a bit out of date, things could have changed a bit, not much though,

best of luck

Tam

[JPea]

Thank you everyone for replies.

 

Tam in response to your reply.

 

When they stopped my single claim at the end of last year I put in a joint application.

They paid it to me backdating it 3 months and started up new weekly payments.

 

 

It is 3 months later, ie this month, that they have written to me saying I owe the 6K, due to my single claim being wrong.

 

They say they cannot take it off my weekly payments and I will have to pay it back directly to them.

The complaints officer says he cannot write off the overpayment.

 

I have written a polite letter saying I do not believe I was listened to correctly or given the correct information....but I am told in the letter that I cannot appeal.

 

Still seems pretty bleak to me

 

Thanks for your help

 

JPea

[tam65]

Ok sorry to hear this, I had this horrible feeling when I was typing that HMRC were tightening up procedures, as every other government department seems to be doing, because of the deficit and since we all have to pay for bailing out the banks.

As I understand it they are playing hardball over the backdating issue, which they probably can because it is the rule, which has cost you 5 months CTC, which would take a huge chunk out of a 6K overpayment. This is unfair and should not be happening.

Since they have stated in a letter that you cannot appeal, no matter how many times you phone they will probably say no sorry it is the rules.

The CAB might be able to write on your behalf and get a result. It can take a few days or a week or so to see the CAB, but do try them, and hopefully they will get a result.

Let us know how you get on

Tam

[tam65]

JPea

Baffled, confused don’t be, you have not done anything wrong. You have made an honest mistake, like thousands of others. Unfortunately there are many thousands more who have made a dishonest mistake, the tax credit system was badly designed, it almost invites fraud, it seems now that honest mistakes are not being rectified the way they should be. Your best bet right now is the CAB, if this is a problem post up here and I will suggest an alternative.

Don’t give up

Tam

[JPea]

Tam....Thank you

 

I will certainly contact the CAB.

 

I was beginning to feel like some sort of criminal......but you are right I have not done anything wrong.

 

I will let you know how things proceed.

 

Thanks again JPea

[mickeyjane]

I am in similar situation, I married my Moroccan hubby in 2006, and immediately informed TC they advised cos he is there and I am here, that didnt need to change the claim from single. When he arrived in the UK in 2007 I again informed them, he wasnt entitled to benefits and also wasnt working so financially wasnt supporting me in anyway. The claim never changed, and I presumed this was because financially I was still single. I was approached by TC compliance almost 2 years ago asking to send in all paperwork, which I did. A year ago they wrote to me saying they hadnt received anything till I gave them proof of posting, then they found it all. They said they would arrange an interview, they hadnt so thought it must have been sorted, and btw didnt know what the reason was for the interview. They called me a week ago asking me questions about who lived here, my husband had come up on electoral role, I advised them that yes it was my husband and that I had informed them he was here, however we have now separate and so therefore he is living with different friends, unless he finds work, there is a possibility however we may resolve things and get back together.

They asked a few questions, and said they would get back to me. I am worried sick, about it all wondering what will happen, and did I claim wrongly.

I worry incase they say I was fraudulent, and also worry about a huge overpayment or payments stopping cos honestly if I dont get them, I dont know how we will survive for myself and my 13year old and get to work and stuff. I only claim TC do not claim hb or ctax benefit and I work full time on minimum wage. I use a childminder cos I am on my own mostly, and cant rely on my husband who is never here for childcare. (daughter is not his btw)

[JPea]

Hi mickeyjane and Tam

 

Thank you so much for your replies. I am sorry that I havent replied sooner, I have not been online.

 

I do hope that your situation resolves successfully mickeyjane.... I have good news regarding my supposed overpayment and I hope that the same will apply to you.

 

Having recieved a letter from the special case officer saying that he had reviewed my case and that I still owed about £6000......I decided not to let matters rest there. I knew that I had not done anything wrong as I had informed them every step of the way. Also on reading the letter from the case officer it had flawed information in many aspects.

 

So I wrote two detailed letters outlining all my contact and communication with the TCO and stated that I had kept all my responsibilities.

They re -reviewed it and wrote back to me with an apology stating that they had misinformed me and given me the wrong advice and that the overpayment would not need to be paid back.

 

I can now relax as I was so worried about it all.

 

Thank you again Tam and everyone for your help and advise here.

And mickeyjane, perhaps write to them outlining all you have told them and what they have told you and they will review their decision.

 

JPea

[bluedogx]

Good news

[Nystagmite]

That's good news.

[onlyme79]

Hi MickeyJane,

 

I hope it all works out ok for you.

That's an awful long time to have it hanging over you....

 

Does anyone know - is it normal for tax credit compliance issues to drag on for so long? 2 years seems mad to me.