Tax Credit "overpayment" - Ahem

[Angel Steele]

Hello all,

 

I received Working Families Tax Credit (as it was then called) while my daughter was at college 7 years ago.

 

When she left college I informed the Tax Credit Office of this.

 

In 2009 I received a letter informing me that an overpayment had been paid and that I owed the sum of £4,600.

 

I disputed this and letters between myself and the Tax Credit Office went back and forth all to no avail.

 

Then all went quiet so I assumed they had realised their error. This was in 2009.

 

Suddenly in October last year, some 4.5 years down the line I received a letter asking for payment.

 

I wrote to them, disputing this - again - and asking what sort of department they run as it was over 4.5 years since they last contacted me.

 

Heard nothing from them.

 

Another letter from them asking for payment.

 

Wrote to them again, with a copy of my previous letter.

 

Ahem - today another letter demanding the money and an attachment about how a representative of theirs can take possession of my belongings.

 

Did they not get my letters or are they just being difficult?

 

Any suggestions? I may have to ring them but I am loathe to at present.

 

Fortunately I have all their correspondence from 2006 onwards, plus my replies to them.

 

Thanks in advance for any advice/suggestions

[blondebubbles]

I think your going to have to call them. It will show on their system any disputes received and if replies where sent.

 

Do you actually know the reason for the overpayment?

[Angel Steele]

It is the fact that they did not contact me for 5 years that I find amazing then suddenly they write demanding over £4k!! Despite me writing to them they still act as though they have no correspondence from me.

[Angel Steele]

Can anyone else offer any advice pls? I am going to phone them but what about the fact that they didn't contact me for 4.5 years.

[blondebubbles]

The fact they didn't contact you makes little difference to the overpayment position.

 

You can complain but it won't change the fact an overpayment exists.

[Angel Steele]

Sadly this is still rumbling on hence this post. I requested a SAR from them which I received in February this year (2015). It contained print outs of transactions but no copy correspondence between myself and HMRC over the years. I wrote to them way back with the change of my circumstances but they simply failed to act on this.

 

Since February this year I have written numerous letters to them, and phoned as well. I have sent a letter lodging a formal complaint at the way my case has been dealt with and finally on Friday (04 Dec) I received a response form them which was written in riddles. They told me they would not consider my appeal, totally disregarded the letter I sent advising them not to harass me any more and seemed to think a phone call I made where I was passed from piller to post with no positive outcome constituted a successful phone call. They also stated that they had not received correspondence from me.

 

They answer questions with questions, fail to address issues I raise and I feel I am going round in circles here! What can I do to resolve this? Phoning is a thankless task - you are left on hold for absolutely ages and then after all that you are told they cannot help you.

[reallymadwoman]

Does it tell you on the letter what to do if you're not satisfied with their response, e.g. the complaints procedure? Once you've exhausted that, there is an ombudsman or equivalent. You could also try asking your MP to intervene.

[Angel Steele]

I sent in a letter of complaint dated 6 November 2015 which they state they received on 18 November.

 

Their most recent letter says as the end "Our fact sheet (C/FS) entitled "Complaints" describes what to do if you are unhappy with the way we have dealt with your complaint". Then says where I can get a copy from. I find this so frustrating as they continually refuse to acknowledge my letters, or say they have not received them and do not respond to questions I have asked them.

 

I also get letters from their in-house debt collectors, Past Credit Solutions, who I have advised I will not be dealing with.

[reallymadwoman]

I know it is frustrating (been there, done that, independent adjudicator found that I wouldn't have copies of letters if I hadn't sent them) but you need to keep plodding through the complaints procedure. Start the next letter by saying you would like their response reviewd (link here https://www.gov.uk/tax-credits-appeals-complaints/complaints), then go through your letter and their response and use numbered paragraphs to highlight every error/omission. When that produces a final response (you may have to insist they provide one, I did!) you can go to the Adjudicator.

As for Past Credit, just respond once with 'in dispute, bog off' and then ignore them.

[martin2006]

did they ever tell you how the overpayment came about?

[Angel Steele]

Yes it is somewhat frustrating to say the least, especially when they respond to letters in riddles. Despite me writing to say I want to appeal they tell me I am not able to due to the length of time that has elapsed. The length of time has a fair bit to do with their complete lack of anyone seemingly knowing what they are doing.

 

I will though keep on plodding, and yes I have told Past Credit that I will not be dealing with them.

 

Thank you for your response.

[Angel Steele]

Yes Martin2006 they did. They state it was because I was earning too much and should not have received any Tax Credits but on the forms I submitted for the years in question I had added my annual salary where requested.

[martin2006]

Seems like a double edged sword they use!!

U cant appeal because of how long ago it was but they can reclaim it despite the length of time, that really isnt on and i fully sympathise with you.

I hope you keep on with this and dont give up, help is always available here.

[martin2006]

As reallymadwoman has said, you must get their final response and then go to the adjudicator @ http://www.adjudicatorsoffice.gov.uk

[Angel Steele]

Thanks both, I am not giving up on this!!

[martin2006]

Myself and others will certainly help in any way we can, i'm not sure if there are any successes logged here but would create a very interesting milestone if one were.

[reallymadwoman]

I can't remember if I posted about it at the time (would be 2008ish!) but in my case the Adjudicator told HMRC to write off the outstanding amount.

[martin2006]

I havent seen any on here but a quick google "tax credit appeal success" threw a few up on other sites

[Angel Steele]

This is still ongoing sadly!

 

Quick question though - I requested a SAR which has been sent to me but it did not contain any correspondence at all, just print outs of BACs transactions.

 

I queried this with HMRC and was told they do not keep any correspondence going back after 2009. Is this what other members have come across?

 

I have written so many letters to them and find it hard to believe that not one was included in my SAR request.

 

I am not at the stage of taking this to The Adjudicator's Office.

[Angel Steele]

Apologies I meant to say that I do have a letter from HMRC that I will be sending to The Adjudicator's Office but do not have a "Final Response" letter that ReallyMadWoman refers to above.