ESA and compensation

In brief: OH had a motorbike accident in July 2009 (not his fault) - he claimed SSP for 6 months ish and then onto CB ESA. He has booted off CB ESA in April this year (not eligible for income based).

He is claiming compensation for the accident (had 4 operations as a result to date, constant pain, etc etc) I have vague memories that he has to pay some (or all?) of the ESA he claimed back (I don't even know if this applies for the SSP too)

The solicitors have turned around and said he can only claim loss of earnings for up to 6 months and that he should have been able to go back to work (we disagree with this but the 'medical expert' has said this so I don't think we can argue)

We had one very unofficial letter from the DWP (they spelt his name wrong, impressive) about compensation claims and ESA about 3 years ago, not heard anything since. I presume there must be some sort of communication channel between the compensation 'people' and ESA.

Does he have to pay back the ESA for the entire claim, or just for those first 6 months?

Comments

  • Hi

    Your boyfriend should talk to his solicitor about this.

    If the medical evidence only supports 6 months loss of earnings, your bf will only be able to include 6 months loss of earnings in his claim.

    You can't recover money for the same thing twice, so the ESA paid would normally be deducted from his loss of earnings claim by the 'compensator' (I assume he's going against an insurance company).

    However it should never be deducted from the money he receives for his personal injuries (this is known as 'general damages' and out of pocket expenses/financial losses are known as 'special damages'). The worst that can happen is his loss of earnings claim will be reduced to zero and some money may be deducted from other special damages to make up the shortfall (if there is one). They can only make deductions from certain categories of losses

    There is more information here: http://www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/specialist-guides/technical-guidance/z1-recovery-of-benefits-and/1.-the-law/

    However, do get your bf to speak to the solicitor about this - never be afraid to ask them anything, they are there to support you. Also please note I'm not a solicitor or a CAB person so don't take my word for it!
  • Wywth
    Wywth Posts: 5,079 Forumite
    edited 3 August 2012 at 8:12AM
    I maybe wrong here, but if the OP's OH gets compensation for loss of earnings, then any ESA for that period should be repaid.

    I don't see why us hard earning tax payers should pay for any such losses incurred.

    If the OP's OH was certified by a medical practitioner as being OK to return to work after 6 months, why didn't he return?
  • CAB_Birmingham_representative
    CAB_Birmingham_representative Posts: 89 Organisation Representative
    Hi there,

    Your boyfriend should absolutely speak to his solicitor about this as previously stated to clarify any unanswered questions that you have.

    It is not possible to provide a definite response to your query in the abscence of not seeing any paperwork. If you require further assistance with this issue we suggest that you call in to your local bureau.

    Please follow the link below and type in your address to find out where your local bureau is.

    http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/england/about_this_site/get_advice.htm


    Citizens Advice Bureau
    Official CAB Representative
    I am an official representative of CAB. MSE has given permission for me to post in response to questions on the CAB Board. You can see my name on the companies with permission to post list. If you believe I’ve broken any rules please report my post to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com as usual"
  • Rachel_123
    Rachel_123 Posts: 173
    First Anniversary Combo Breaker First Post
    Forumite
    Wywth wrote: »
    I maybe wrong here, but if the OP's OH gets compensation for loss of earnings, then any ESA for that period should be repaid.

    I don't see why us hard earning tax payers should pay for any such losses incurred.

    If the OP's OH was certified by a medical practitioner as being OK to return to work after 6 months, why didn't he return?

    Did I say we weren't going to pay it back? If you read it properly, I was asking about the period where he will NOT be receiving loss of earnings, but was still receiving (and was ruled to be entitled to) ESA. His loss of earnings claim will not be as much as the amount of ESA he received if he had to pay back the whole lot of ESA. If I wasn't going to pay it back, I wouldn't be asking about it. I am also one of these 'hard earning' (not quite sure what one of these is, I'm guessing you were trying for hard working) tax payers. You will be pleased to know he is now entitled to no benefits.

    He wasn't fit to work, could barely walk and couldn't use his right hand, had bad shoulder and knee pain and was suffering from PTSD. The 'medical practitioner' ruled him fit to work 2 years after the event, and never saw him at the time. He was covered by a sicknote throughout the entire period.

    To the more helpful people, thanks for your comments, yes I will be speaking to the solicitor, it is just slightly difficult as the OH has just had an operation and is drugged up and not really with it, and I'm working full time so unable to speak to him currently. I am looking into seeing if I can email him.
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