Support with overpayments - Carer's Allowance | Carers UK (2024)

Keep track of earnings
It can be difficult to keep track of your earnings and be sure you are keeping under the earnings threshold, and mistakes can be made.

It is better not to wait
If you are concerned that you may have been overpaid Carer's Allowance, it’s important to deal with this as soon as possible. You may want to put it to the back of your mind, but the DWP will probably realise there’s an error sooner or later. The longer any overpayment goes on, the more you’ll end up having to pay back and the consequences can get more serious.

Seek specialist advice
If you are concerned that you may have exceeded the earnings limit, it's a good idea to seek some local advice to see where you stand. If you have been overpaid, you will need to let the Carer's Allowance Unit know and keep a record that you have updated them. In Northern Ireland, contact the Disability and Carers Service, ‘Carer’s Allowance’ team.

It's advisable to keep your own records
They may suspend your claim whilst they look into it and may ask you to provide more information. If you phone the Carer's Allowance Unit to report your concern, make a note of when you have called them (ie, time and date) and what you told them. Or if you report a change online, make sure you keep a copy of the email acknowledgement and a note of what you sent them. Keep a copy of any letter that you send so you are able to keep track of what’s been said and when.

By notifying the Carer's Allowance Unit, you have fulfilled your duty to keep them updated about your circ*mstances, but it’s a worry when you don’t hear back.

Check that they have received your notification by phoning them and keep a note of the telephone conversation. Keep any email acknowledgement you have if you reported the change in your circ*mstances online.

It’s a good idea to set the money on one side until this has been dealt with as if there has been an overpayment, the DWP will ask for the money to be repaid. If this is the case, then you will have the money available to repay the DWP.

Unfortunately, different departments in the DWP do not communicate information to one another in a way that you might expect. You need to contact the department that is paying your benefit to let them know about any changes that might affect your entitlement and keep proof that you have kept them updated. You should always report changes to each department individually.

It's important to be able to show what information you have given to them and when this happened. This helps avoid confusion and allows you to keep on top of managing your claim.

They are likely to suspend your Carer's Allowance until they have made a decision about the overpayment and have checked your continuing entitlement to Carer's Allowance. If you are in financial difficulties during this time, you should seek help from a local advice agency.

What happens if they decide there has been an overpayment?
If they decide there has been an overpayment, the Carer's Allowance Unit will write to you and should set out the amount of the overpayment and the dates over which they believe the overpayment happened. If you don’t get full written reasons, you can ask for more details.

Seek support if needed
Once you receive this letter and have details of the overpayment, you can check whether you agree that there has been an overpayment and also whether the total amount that they have asked you to repay is correct and is recoverable.

It can be complicated so if you need help with working this out, you can gather together any information such as payslips and DWP letters that you have and make an appointment with a local Citizens Advice or another local advice agency. They will be able to help you to check that the overpayment notice is correct and whether there is any way it could be challenged.

You will not be expected to pay everything back immediately
It’s a shock and can be very worrying to receive a request to repay money but if you do not have the funds, you will not be expected to repay the whole amount all at once. Money will be deducted from your current benefits or from your earnings if you are working. If you are experiencing difficulties, the amount you repay each month can be negotiated and the debt repaid over a longer period of time.

Get advice
The important thing is to seek help from a local advice agency and once you are satisfied the overpayment notice is correct and the overpayment can be recovered, you can contact the Debt Management Team (details are on the letter you will receive from the Carer's Allowance Unit) to arrange repayment at a rate that shouldn’t cause you or your family hardship. You can get local advice and support if you need to negotiate a lower rate of repayment. The advice agency can also help you find a money adviser if you are struggling with debt.

Take things one step at a time
Try not to worry if you don’t have enough money; you will not be expected to repay the overpayment all at once. If you’re still receiving benefits, the usual amount you get will be reduced until you have paid back the overpayment. If you are no longer claiming benefits, you will be asked to come to an arrangement with the debt management service which is part of the DWP.

What to expect
You will get a letter fromDWPDebt Management explaining how torepay and manage any benefit money you owe. In Scotland, further information is available on the government website here.

We have a list of free and confidential money advice services on our website here which can also help you get on top of things. Do give them a call if you are worried about your finances including managing the additional burden of repaying an overpayment.

Try not to jump to any conclusions
It’s important to remember that you are not necessarily suspected of fraud because there has been an overpayment. Benefit fraud involves someone acting deliberately or dishonestly when dealing with a benefit authority like the Carer's Allowance Unit. This could be where someone deliberately failed to tell the benefit authority about a change of circ*mstances so they could get a benefit that they weren’t entitled to.

This means that if you misunderstood, forgot or were unaware of your duty to report a change which meant you were overpaid, you will be asked to repay the money over a period of time and may get a civil penalty but this is different from acting fraudulently. This is when a person deliberately claims benefits that they know they are not entitled to.

Overpayments can happen for a variety of reasons including error on the part of the DWP or because of innocent mistakes or oversights. Remember, overpayments mean that you have been paid too much money not that you have committed benefit fraud.