Money rec'd from a job I never started - advice please

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  • lush_walrus
    lush_walrus Posts: 1,975 Forumite
    Of course you owe them the money.
  • FBaby
    FBaby Posts: 18,367
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    Why do you think you should be entitled to keep it? Because they made an error? So if by error you credit a stranger by £146 by error when it was meant to go to your landlord, do you think they would have a right to keep that random payment just because you made that mistake?
  • GDB2222
    GDB2222 Posts: 24,410
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    edited 16 March 2017 at 7:15AM
    Actually, none of the advice above is quite accurate.

    Yes, you are normally obliged to return the money. But see the following from the Financial Ombudsman website.

    "But the position is not always as simple as this. The consumer may sometimes not have noticed that they had received money by mistake - perhaps because the amount did not stand out from other transactions in their account, or because they had wrongly identified it as a payment they were expecting. By the time the mistake comes to light, the consumer may have spent some or all of the money.

    Where we are satisfied that the consumer had in all honesty not realised that the money was not intended for them, we will generally look to see what they did with the money before the mistake was noticed.

    We will normally uphold complaints like this only where the consumer's position changed in such a way that it would be unfair for them now to have to pay back some or all of the money. To decide whether this has happened, we are likely to need to ask the consumer for details about their wider financial situation - so that we can fairly assess the impact on them of what has happened."

    This is a statement of the general position under law that you may not need to return (all) the money if you acted honestly and your position changed as a result of the mistake.
    No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?
  • agrinnall
    agrinnall Posts: 23,344
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    GDB2222 wrote: »
    Actually, none of the advice above is quite accurate.

    Yes, you are normally obliged to return the money. But see the following from the Financial Ombudsman website.

    I'm sure your quote from the FOS is correct, but as they have no jurisdiction whatsoever in this case (assuming that the OP's job wasn't going to be with M&S Bank) I'm doubtful whether it has any relevance.
  • Oakdene
    Oakdene Posts: 2,560
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    GDB2222 wrote: »
    Actually, none of the advice above is quite accurate.

    Yes, you are normally obliged to return the money. But see the following from the Financial Ombudsman website.

    "But the position is not always as simple as this. The consumer may sometimes not have noticed that they had received money by mistake - perhaps because the amount did not stand out from other transactions in their account, or because they had wrongly identified it as a payment they were expecting. By the time the mistake comes to light, the consumer may have spent some or all of the money.

    Where we are satisfied that the consumer had in all honesty not realised that the money was not intended for them, we will generally look to see what they did with the money before the mistake was noticed.

    We will normally uphold complaints like this only where the consumer's position changed in such a way that it would be unfair for them now to have to pay back some or all of the money. To decide whether this has happened, we are likely to need to ask the consumer for details about their wider financial situation - so that we can fairly assess the impact on them of what has happened."

    This is a statement of the general position under law that you may not need to return (all) the money if you acted honestly and your position changed as a result of the mistake.

    Would be interested to see how consumer law relates in a matter which surely is employment law?
    Dwy galon, un dyhead,
    Dwy dafod ond un iaith,
    Dwy raff yn cydio’n ddolen,
    Dau enaid ond un taith.
  • debstheleo wrote: »
    I am looking for some legal advice please:

    In Dec 2016 I applied for a temp role with M & S for 30+ hours. At the interview they offered me the role, but only 19 hours. I accepted as I was unemployed. At home on reflection of my travel costs, I declined the role.

    My husband worked for M & S (different branch) in a temp xmas role. They sent him a P45 while he was still working there. When 2 small payments were credited to our a/c in January we didn't think anything of it.

    Turns out M & S paid ME £146!!!! I never worked there, never had a contract, an employee number, clocked in or anything,

    Now they are demanding I pay this money back or they will instruct a debt collection agency.

    Does anyone know where I stand legally on this matter?

    Thanks in advance

    I suggest paying for a lawyers time then.

    However if you want random advice from strangers, you have come to the right place. and my 2penceworth is;

    oh my, you really had to ask, what has this world come to.
  • catflap11
    catflap11 Posts: 98
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    How did they get your bank details? did you complete forms with your bank information on? normally that is done once you commence work? (or at least in my experience it is).

    Anyway, as everyone else has said, you owe them it, simple as that
  • maisie_cat
    maisie_cat Posts: 2,058
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    Are you sure that your husband was paid all he should have been? If he received a P45 while still working there is a chance that you were both setup as a starters and when you changed your mind they terminated your husband rather than you. When I start a new job I always check that the correct amount of money comes into my account with the payslip so I'm surprised you didn't spot it. Most payroll systems are run a week or so in advance so you may have missed the cutoff for changes. That explains how you got the money in the first place & now you need to pay it back.
  • Undervalued
    Undervalued Posts: 8,839
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    GDB2222 wrote: »
    Actually, none of the advice above is quite accurate.

    Yes, you are normally obliged to return the money. But see the following from the Financial Ombudsman website.

    "But the position is not always as simple as this. The consumer may sometimes not have noticed that they had received money by mistake - perhaps because the amount did not stand out from other transactions in their account, or because they had wrongly identified it as a payment they were expecting. By the time the mistake comes to light, the consumer may have spent some or all of the money.

    Where we are satisfied that the consumer had in all honesty not realised that the money was not intended for them, we will generally look to see what they did with the money before the mistake was noticed.

    We will normally uphold complaints like this only where the consumer's position changed in such a way that it would be unfair for them now to have to pay back some or all of the money. To decide whether this has happened, we are likely to need to ask the consumer for details about their wider financial situation - so that we can fairly assess the impact on them of what has happened."

    This is a statement of the general position under law that you may not need to return (all) the money if you acted honestly and your position changed as a result of the mistake.

    Oh yes it is!

    What you have quoted would be of some (limited) relevance if the OP was in pocket as a result of an error by a bank or other organisation over which the FOS has jurisdiction.

    In an employment situation (which this would seem to be) there are incredibly few situations where somebody who is overpaid has a right to keep the money. This certainly wouldn't be one of them.
  • GDB2222
    GDB2222 Posts: 24,410
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    Oakdene wrote: »
    Would be interested to see how consumer law relates in a matter which surely is employment law?

    That's why I added:
    This is a statement of the general position under law that you may not need to return (all) the money if you acted honestly and your position changed as a result of the mistake.

    Please do feel free to research the law yourself.
    No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?
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