Child Benefit post 16?

nodiscount

Hi I'm looking for some friendly advice for my mum. I hope someone can help me.

My question is, When does CB stop if the intention was to go onto further training but the person fails entry exam?

Background: My mum was getting CB for my brother (birthday is in nov so reached 17 after school year finished). Anyway, he was supposed to go to building college but there weren't any places left for that year.

Mum got letter re CB and she sent it back with this info "son is going college following year etc", and CB continued.

Following year brother applied but failed entrance exam (around beginning of year), I read that CB could stop at this point.

CB stopped and payments from when he left school (instead of when failed exam - around £880) classed as overpaid.

A further complication, HMRC are saying there is no record of her sending correspondence - therefore failure to disclose that bro left education. She has no records of her own (don't worry, have already lectured her - talk about inverse parenting). Thinking of making a subject access request, is it worth doing?

This all happened a year ago and she has been paying back with hardship but I've noticed her mental health deteriorating and wondered if I could challenge on her behalf. If I'm wrong please tell me nicely. My mum hates claiming benefits and is not trying to squirm out of this.

Thanks for any helpful tips received.

JC9297

If your brother left school in July aged 16 and has not attended any school/college since then Child Benefit would have been paid until the beginning of September, anything received since then will be overpayment. I think your mother may have mislead them by talking about the following year, this has been taken to mean the following school year and so payments continued. I'm sure you have to fill in a form naming the establishment the young person will attend and the date you expect them to finish full-time education. You are meant to inform them if the child does not go, or starts and then drops out of a course because then the entitlement ends. Did your mum not think it strange that they would continue to pay her money for him whist he was not studying?

So sorry if you were hoping to hear that there was some sort of mistake (other than on your mum's side), and that the money would not have to be re-paid.

nodiscount

Thanks for your reply.

I saw the forms (there were more than one) and helped her fill them in. She wrote along lines of "going to building college etc".

Did your mum not think it strange that they would continue to pay her money for him whist he was not studying?

I told her about this. She thought CB was still payable if intention to go existed. He was going to go but we didn't realise he'd flunk entry exam.

So sorry if you were hoping to hear that there was some sort of mistake (other than on your mum's side), and that the money would not have to be re-paid.

I have a feeling this is the case which is why we didn't appeal inthe first instance and have started repayment. I just want to snuff out that voice in my head that is telling me I should have tried to help my mum. That little voice's view is that mum sent back the info they requested and HMRC carried on paying therefore official error!

If only she had kept records we would be able to show this

shell_542

Did she not specify which year he was intending to go to building college, because i she just said pre Sep last year "will be going to building college" ... that would look to them like he was going in September, not Sep 2010. They would have asked for information regarding 2009, not 2010.

nodiscount

This happened in 08 so I'm trying to rack my brains. If I remember correctly she sent back correspondence on three occasions:
1. to say he intends to go to college
2. to say that course is oversubscribed and he will apply next year
3. to confirm time of entrance exam.
But I have to check this again with her as I make not be recalling the info correctly.

But isn't CB supposed to automatically stop unless parent confirms further education or do HMRC continue to pay assuming the child is going to study further?

shell_542

The first correspondence saying he was applying for further education would have prompted the payments to continue.

She did right by following up saying he hadn't got in that year, but unfortunately, if the payments continued and she received nothing back from them, she should have followed it up further. It would tie in with them now saying they didn't receive it ... or maybe they mislaid it.

Oldernotwiser

Sorry to worry you even more but is there any possibility that she may also have been getting child tax credits for him during this period?

nodiscount

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

Sorry to worry you even more but is there any possibility that she may also have been getting child tax credits for him during this period?

She's already repaying that back as well.
She nearly had a heart attack when that letter came through.

They are reviewing her repayment plan and want her to complete expenditure form which is what prompted me to ask for help even at this late stage.

Pont

Apologies for hi-jacking but I'm getting conflicting advise. If any peeps in the know out there can help, I'd be very grateful.

My daughter completed her A levels in July (results in August). She started university on 22nd September. She turned 18 on 5th September (technically she was in the year group above). I notified the CB office that as of the 22nd September she no longer lived at my address. Herein lies the problem!

CB told me that her birthdate indicates that she is in non-advanced education and that her CB runs until the end of August next year (the end of August following her 18th birthday). I have told them that she IS in advanced education but nobody seems to be getting it! My understanding is that I will have to repay the overpayment from either the last day of August or at least from her 18th birthday. Can anybody give me a definitive answer please?

Oldernotwiser

You're correct, you'll need to repay the overpayment.

Pont

Yes, I understand I need to pay back the overpayment but when from?
1) The last day of August?
2) My daughter's 18th birthday (5th September)?
3) When she moved out to go to university (22nd September)?