help! child tax compliance letter

cassie35

hi, i hope someone can help me with this as i am so very worried and not sleeping. i received a letter to provide a contract with my childcare provider and receipts for april 2010 - april 2011.

i have only had a verbal agreement with my nursery and have never received a receipt for payments.

this is not my only problem... i have 2 children one of whom is still in full time nursery, the other child started school in september, i asked my husbant to contact the tax credits to update and he never, and to be honest i had forgotton about it. so i will have been over paid for about 10 months - i have een up all night and hve come to the sum of approx £2500 over payment.

i have no problem paying this back as it was a genuine mistake, but i am worried they will prosecute me and i wil end up in prison (should do for my stupidity!) should i provide a cover letter to explain what had happened along with invoices which hopefuly the nursery will provide?

PLEASE SOMEONE HELP!

make_me_wise

Speak with the nursery manager and explain that child tax credits require written confirmation of your childs attendance with them. They should have been providing you with reciepts. Most acredited nurseries also need for a contract to be signed before a child starts with them. If you pay them by direct debit you can prove payments by supplying copies of bank statements.

I know that to many people £2500 is a lot of money but I doubt very much they would prosecute you and send you to prison. More likely is that a new calculation will be made, exact overpayment calculated and a re-payment plan set up.

All you can do is phone the relevant parties and see what they suggest. If you send any documents to tax credits use recorded delivery and take copies of what you send them.

DaisyFlower

Did you not renew in April and advise the change then either?

There have been a lot of posts recently where people have been overpaying childcare, seems like the HMRC need to do far more checks or actual pay the childcare direct.

cassie35

hi, yes i agree, it would be much easier for alot of busy families if they paid nurseries direct, to prevent stupid mistakes like mine!
no i havent yet renewed - to be honest i hadnt even opened the pack until i received the compliance letter - as i couldnt understand why i had got one - then obviously when i opened the pack and it breaks down what you have actually claimed for my husband and i nearly fell over! we both had forgotton all abot it - stupid i know.
i have used the tax calculator to see if they could adjust this claim - but because we have both earned too much we wont be entitled to anything.
i really do hope they dont prosecute - should i ring them then and explain - or just send the information and wait for the outcome?

995anna

I have lost the letter sent to me asking for copies of nursery invoices etc. I have tried to phone the number constantly but there is no reply to find out the address to return the invoices - can anybody give me the address - I don't want to send it to Preston and they go missing and I have to get copies again. I have phoned the Preston offices now 5 times and they say that they don't know the address to send them too and that i have to phone the number (there is not reply and eventually just cuts off) Can anybody help!!!!!

dcems

Tax Credit Offices
Benefits and Credits
Preston
PR1 0SB

You will have to send the info to this address as the compliance team are dealing with it. I'm in the same position as you. However,they sent me a renewal form where they clearly believe I dont pay for childcare.

Ive sent off my evidence-I think Ive been overpaid also, as I didnt tell them I had changed a child care provider to another provider.

Send your letter recorded delivery

Anubis_2

You surely must have had to sign something in relation to your child being in their care, an agreement, if not only for insurance purposes, and I am sure the Nursery should supply agreements by law for parents to sign before the child starts. I was always made to sign, and I am going back between 15 and 24 years.

If the nursery are not supplying agreements to new parents, they are treading on very dangerous ground. Even a registered childminder has to do this. Check with your Nursery if you signed any document because that will have the date on also.

Lou76

You must've surely noticed your bank balance being healthier each month?

If you needed these payments just to survive, you must surely work on a strict budget, therefore any overpayments would have registered with you?

Why then do you not have the overpayment to give straight back?

Anubis_2

I understand what you are saying Lou, but no one has to give an overpayment straight back as it is not as cut and dried as not spending the extra in reality.

FBaby

I really can't understand this 'I didn't realise, it is was a silly mistake'. When my kids were at nursery, I had already calculated 12 months before them starting school how much better off I would be. How can you not noticed how better off you must have found yourself each month and not think 'oops, of course, it is because I pay less nursery fees but still get all TC.'

There seem to be quite a few absent minded innocent parent errupting suddenly with these letters going about and I am glad that they are being made to repay. We should be massively grateful that we receive help for childcare costs allowing many mothers to work and build on their career, taking advantage of it is just very wrong. I do hope you don't end up being prosecuted though, there is much worse crime that should take priority.

sorryitsme

995anna wrote: »

I have lost the letter sent to me asking for copies of nursery invoices etc. I have tried to phone the number constantly but there is no reply to find out the address to return the invoices - can anybody give me the address - I don't want to send it to Preston and they go missing and I have to get copies again. I have phoned the Preston offices now 5 times and they say that they don't know the address to send them too and that i have to phone the number (there is not reply and eventually just cuts off) Can anybody help!!!!!

I had to send my paperwork to:
B&C Compliance Operations,
Millennium House
17A -25 Great Victoria Street,
Belfast
BT2 7BN

Before you send the paperwork to the Preston address you must confirm where it must be sent.

Make sure you send your documents recorded delivery, if you don't have receipts but pay by card or standing order highlight your bank statements.

My check took approx 5 weeks after sending the documents for a response, everything was fine and they finalised 2010-11 and also completed my renewal.

If you have already renewed and then had a compliance letter sent to you, double check any award notices, because if it says provisional you have NOT renewed and it will only renewed after the compliance check.

Hope this helps.:)