Overpayment from a previous job.

jodie_christina_2

I worked for a well known cinema for over a month and left due to late hours and poor working conditions. I never recieved a payslip during my time at the cinema.

I have recently recieved a letter stating that they have attempted to contact my by letter and are now demanding £675.87 back from an overpayment.

I did not recieve any letter forwarning me of this and as I have not recieved either a payslip of a P45, I was unaware of the overpayment. I did recieve a notification from the postoffice stating that I had a letter to be signed for but was unable to leave work to retrieve said letter.

The Cinema are now stating that if I fail to make a full payment by the 25/11 I will be taken to the county court and will incur both court costs and any interest on the outstanding amount.

Please could you advise me of what my rights are? I am able to pay back the amount but due to the wording and threatening nature of the letter and no warning, I am unwilling to co-operate and am unhappy with their level of care to employees. I left this employment on 13th Oct.

I have seen references to the Wages Act 1986 but don't quite understand the wording and whether it may be relivant to me.
Thanks in advance,

Jodie

t0rt0ise

You need to ask them for evidence as to why you owe them this money. Ask for copies of payslips and for them to show how this has happened. keep a copy of the letter you send, by signed for delivery, so that you can show it to the court if it comes to that.

agrinnall

And this time if they send a letter that has to be signed for make sure you go to the sorting office to collect it rather than just ignoring it. They usually have opening hours that are in part outside the normal 9-5 working times so you should be able to find a time that suits you - if you can't you'll just have to take time off from work to go, or be at home and get it re-delivered. Or ask someone to go for you (but you'll have to give them proof of your address to take with them).

Acc72

t0rt0ise wrote: »

You need to ask them for evidence as to why you owe them this money. Ask for copies of payslips and for them to show how this has happened. keep a copy of the letter you send, by signed for delivery, so that you can show it to the court if it comes to that.

I agree with the above.

Reply in writing - signed, recorded delivery.

Just state that you have not received any previous correspondence, and also that you do not believe that there has been an overpayment.

Also, ask them to confirm their calculations as to how they got to this figure - including copies of all timesheets, and payslips etc.

Do not even mention anything about repayment plans or not being able to afford to repay etc.

Also, confirm your leaving date and that you are still awaiting your P45.

LadyMissA

jodie_christina wrote: »

I did recieve a notification from the postoffice stating that I had a letter to be signed for but was unable to leave work to retrieve said letter.

If this was the letter from your last job they have proof they sent it and you ignored it - you can get it delivered on another date and it says that on the card they put in the letter box so you could have had it on a day you were at home.

Uncertain

It is never a good idea to ignore mail that needs a signature. If it contains a problem then it is best to deal with it promptly. If nothing else that is a lesson for the future.

Regarding the current dispute, you are perfectly entitled to ask them for reasonable proof that you owe them the money. If any of their calculations are wrong then you can and should dispute them. Beyond that you will have to pay what is owed.

You can offer to repay over a period of time and they may well accept - but they don't have to. If they took you to court you would be ordered to pay at whatever rate the court felt you could afford. However, you have said that you have the money so it is unlikely a court would give you extra time and the debt would likely increase with interests and costs.

Carl31

You really didnt notice you were overpaid by nearly 700 quid?

Really?

DVardysShadow

Carl31 wrote: »

You really didnt notice you were overpaid by nearly 700 quid?

Really?

You seem rather too certain that OP was actually overpaid. For someone who was not actually there.

The advice is always to get the employer to provide evidence that there was actually an overpayment, rather than just take their word for it. Otherwise it is just easy money for employers with high turnover roles.

Nightgarden

If question being asked is "can I keep it". The simple answer is no - if you have been paid money that you are not entitled to then you do need to re-pay the amount.

There are all kind of considerations, tax, NI, the threat of legal proceedings and possibly references - all issues that can impact you in the longer term and not worth £700 quid!

You need to talk to your ex-employer, ask them to send the calculations through and then make a decision based on the information they give you (nothing wrong with asking them to check again). Don't be worried about calling them or sending an email to ask for the right information - try and get through to their payroll department as they will be the most help.

Companies are getting sharp to overpayments now and can/do follow the legal route - not all, some still just threaten, but is it worth the risk?

I remember getting a very friendly response to one of these letters, sent many years ago when I was in HR administration, in the form of a lovely letter stamped HMP "x". The individual promised faithfully to pay the organisation back once he was released....

sharnad

get them to provide evidence and then ask to pay in instalments

saintjammyswine

sharnad wrote: »

get them to provide evidence and then ask to pay in instalments

First part yes, ask for proof that you are liable for the debt, second part no, dont offer anything, if you do you are admitting that you are liable for the debt, regardless of any lack of evidece or otherwise. Ask for proof of overpayment and that you owe them the money, then, and only then if it is provided and it is correct should you offer any repayments.

Hopefully someone will come along and confirm the legal points, I remember "without prejudice" should be in the letter somewhere.