Alleged Tax Credits Overpayment

marcus01235oxon

I came home from work today to find a letter from HMRC telling me that i had been over paid tax credits, and that i had 30 days to pay.

This was news to me. The last time i claimed any tax credits was back in 2009, and that ended when i left my then wife. We called them up and informed them of the situation. The renewal form that was due just prior to this had also been completed and posted off. My ex wife had panicked that they might not receive it in time so she rang them up, and gave them the details over the phone too.

I know they had received the paperwork, as they later returned my paperwork i had enlcosed.

I rang there contact number this evening and the gentleman confirmed that it related to 2009, and gave me another number to call.

In the meantime i have spoken to my ex wife and she has also received the same letter. She spoke to them, and she was made to believe that we had not notified them of our changes and subsequently an over payment occured.

I know full well that they were informed about the changes. Before i left her and after i left her. Convieniently all that information is in archive and they will have to apply to get a hold of that information.

Where do we stand on this.. mainly for the fact its taken them over 3 years to make any mention of this.

Are we responsible for their admin errors? Or do we have to pay the supposed 600 pounds (plus) overpayment they claim to have made.

spendaholic66

Were you or your wife still receiving tax credits even after you told them the change in your circumstances? If so then you will have to pay them back, even if an error occurred their end which meant they still paid the credits wrongly. Basically if you still received money you shouldn't have had, and did nothing else (other than when you originally told them the change) to stop that money, then yes you will have to pay it back.

marcus01235oxon

We informed them on the 29th April 2009 that i had left the house and to stop the claim. She also told them at the same time that she was starting a new claim up with her new partner. This was done on the same day.

spendaholic66

I understand that, but even though you tried to end the claim, did you or your wife still receive the tax credits? If the answer is yes then unfortunately you will have to pay them back, even though it was their mistake to be paying them. You should have realised you were still being paid and phoned/written/emailed again.