wage overpayment query

planning303

Alright guys SWIM at my work has asked me a question about wage over payment.

They recieved an over payment of a few hundred pounds, didn't realise at the time ;-) (hmmmm) then spent it... etc etc

Now work are asking for it back and are suggesting 50quid a month, SWIM feel they cannot afford this...

From personal experience of being overpayed i managed to talk a previous employer down to about 5quid a week... anyone know where the law stands on this?

Can the employer dictate the terms or do both parties have to agree...

Thanks Y'all

McKneff

But the point is can you afford to pay this £50, why not negotiate to £25 a month, the more you pay the faster it gets paid off.

To be honest, I get the impression that you did notice the overpayment and hoped they wouldnt notice.

Jarndyce

McKneff wrote: »

But the point is can you afford to pay this £50, why not negotiate to £25 a month, the more you pay the faster it gets paid off.

To be honest, I get the impression that you did notice the overpayment and hoped they wouldnt notice.

If you read the post you will see that the OP is referring to a colleague, not themselves. Dunno what SWIM means like.

Anyway - the employer can demand the money back at any time and on any rate. So whatever your friend can negotiate they should grab.

planning303

SWIM = someone who isn't me...

Yeah is not me, i've been in a similar example with a golden arch based food supplier but was a little different as i informed them of the overpayment on day 1, to which they replied to with "we don't make accounting mistakes".. i got this in writing and then when they asked for it to be returned i reminded them of the previous conversation and got them down to 5 quid a month LOL

Yeah my collegue isn't in such a strong bargaining position, I've suggested that she works out a budget planner (like one of the ones availible on this website) to show how much she can afford to spare and present this to them with her suggested repayment amount.

Can the employer just take the funds out of the workers pay packet? or do they need to get paid and then return the money at whatever agreed amount?

InsideInsurance

There is no defined law on it. If it went to court then they would instruct "you" to repay it as quickly as possible but at a rate that is affordable given your circumstances. If you earned £400,000 and was mortgage/ rent free etc then it would be paid off in one lump sum, if you earn £30 a month + benefits then it'll probably be a few pounds a month.

To avoid going to County Court they should simply negotiate a reasonable amount. It would be helpful if they could illustrate their incoming and outgoings to show why £50 a month isnt affordable (though how £50 cannot be affordable but a couple of hundred can be spent without being noticed I'm not sure)

Jarndyce

liggins wrote: »

Can the employer just take the funds out of the workers pay packet?

Yes they can. It would then be up to the employee to claim that it was unlawful, which is going to take time and (probably) money.

So its best all round to agree a sensible repayment schedule if you can.