Overpayment by previous employer - Again!

MartynR_2

Hi All,

I know this has been covered a number of times but just to be clear on my particular situation. I left my previous employer on the 10th Oct this year, the role was commissioned based so before i left I asked for a breakdown of what I would get in my final salary as it obviously fluctuated month to month. I did not get this, but this week received a final electronic payslip giving me my final salary to coincide with a deposit to my bank account.

Today I was contacted by them to advise I was overpaid to the tune of £600 and i was asked to repay the money. I have offered to pay them a single chunk payment immediately but the rest will have to be made in installments as I simply do not have the capacity to find it all (I used some of my wages to pay off some debt). Can they refuse my offer (which is £50 a month after an initial £150 lumpsum)?

Uncertain

MartynR wrote: »

Can they refuse my offer (which is £50 a month after an initial £150 lumpsum)?

Well they
can but then their only option would be to take you to court. That would cost them time and money and if the court agreed that was all you could afford it is all they would get anyway!

I would just tell them that is what you are going to do and that you have set up a standing order for the monthly £50. It is then their call but my guess is they will accept.

Acc72

MartynR wrote: »

the role was commissioned based so before i left I asked for a breakdown of what I would get in my final salary as it obviously fluctuated month to month. I did not get this,

Today I was contacted by them to advise I was overpaid to the tune of £600 and i was asked to repay the money.

Firstly, do you agree that you have been overpaid by £600 ?

Did you ever receive a breakdown of your final salary as you requested.

How did they contact you - did they send a letter with full calculations etc. ?

Were you owed any holiday pay ?

Before agreeing to anything, you need to be sure of exactly what you expected to be paid and what you actually were paid.

MartynR_2

Thanks for the replies, I have received a payslip that outlines my base and then a seperate line for commission.. it is not broken down any further. One of the main reasons for leaving the role was the pay always seemed to be done via some magical calculator that penalised employees.. in 18 months i never once had a commision statement even though i asked several times.. As a footnote

I have just had an email from them that says.. and i quote..

"I do not have the time to negotiate with you so I will accept your offer to pay £50 a month"

Speaks volumes doesn't it!!:eek:

Uncertain

MartynR wrote: »

"I do not have the time to negotiate with you so I will accept your offer to pay £50 a month"

Excellent, print that out just in case of computer problems!

DVardysShadow

MartynR wrote: »

Thanks for the replies, I have received a payslip that outlines my base and then a seperate line for commission.. it is not broken down any further. One of the main reasons for leaving the role was the pay always seemed to be done via some magical calculator that penalised employees.. in 18 months i never once had a commision statement even though i asked several times.. As a footnote

I have just had an email from them that says.. and i quote..

"I do not have the time to negotiate with you so I will accept your offer to pay £50 a month"

Speaks volumes doesn't it!!:eek:

Frankly, I would started by asking for commission statements and Iwould not have offered them a penny until they had supplied them.

Sambucus_Nigra

I would say that the standing order will be set up as soon as a full commission statement is received detailing everything relating to payments made against payments earnt.

Acc72

DVardysShadow wrote: »

Frankly, I would started by asking for commission statements and Iwould not have offered them a penny until they had supplied them.

I agree with this.

I would just write back and say that further to their recent e-mail, you have been going through all of your payslips and need further clarification.

State that you need a full breakdown of all commission payments made during the full period of your employment before you are able to agree to any repayment schedule.

Ps- were you owed any holiday when you left ?

SarEl

Unfortunately it is a bit late for that. By making an offer of repayment the OP has accepted the debt. They should not have made any offer until they were satisfied that they owed the money in the first place, buit having done so the debt has been accepted.

bevanuk

SarEl wrote: »

Unfortunately it is a bit late for that. By making an offer of repayment the OP has accepted the debt. They should not have made any offer until they were satisfied that they owed the money in the first place, buit having done so the debt has been accepted.

Curiousity got the better of me here. Could I e-mail someone and say you owe me £600, if they agreed they did and offered me £100 per month do they have to pay me back? Even if they didn't in the first place?

P.S. I'm not questioning the advice, genuinely curious!

SarEl

bevanuk wrote: »

Curiousity got the better of me here. Could I e-mail someone and say you owe me £600, if they agreed they did and offered me £100 per month do they have to pay me back? Even if they didn't in the first place?

P.S. I'm not questioning the advice, genuinely curious!

Yes. In agreeing that the debt is owed and offering repayment then they have accepted the debt. Which is why the advice is always to check what is allegedly owed before making repayment offers. Acknowledging a debt - which you do if you offer repayment - is evidence of the debt. Although to be fair - the employer may not know this.