Have your say on Tax Credits

very_bad_money_handler

i had a a nightmare trying to sort my case out, over 2 yrs of confusion on my part & theirs, after a visit to the tax office a week b4 xmas, it turns out my case was hijacked. I had to put in a fresh claim which was processed very promptly, and then 3 giro cheques to value of £900 arrived in the post with letter to say that I was a victim of fraud and a extra payment of £60 for the hassle. very nice thank you. I then had a visit from fraud squad from customs to investigate my case, so a very happy ending for me after 3 years of endless pointless phone calls. I am now receiving my correct payments for the childcare element of tax credits!!!! so there is hope for some us

GemA_2

trish06 wrote: »

as the tax credit people are asking for an overpayment of £5000 pounds
and are charging interest 2 :mad:

they have added over £3000 pounds of interest
i cant believe they can add interest like this :mad:

I work on Tax Credits Recovery for HMRC, and I've never heard of anyone being charged interest on their Overpayment - I don't mean to challenge your statement, I'd just be interested to know which department issued the demand, and how they work out the interest. (I don't want to tell people, "There's never interest on Tax Credits" if it's wrong!)

I spend every day phoning people who have been overpaid Tax Credits. Usually I spend five minutes explaining how the overpayment arose - overlap in claims, late notification of change of circumstances, non-return of declaration form etc - then another ten minutes or more listening to the catalogue of errors perpetrated by Tax Credit Office.

Some days I feel more like a counsellor than a debt collector.

Frequently I have to stop myself from telling them that the same thing happened to me, that I'm currently paying back my overpayment from when I split up with my ex, and other unprofessional things!

I see a lot of disputes go through to TCO. And I see a lot of notes made on their system along the lines of: "Dispute action complete, Overpayment is fully recoverable."

Basically, if you just want to have a whinge about how rubbish they are, you won't get anywhere. You have to have a valid point about errors they have made, and that you couldn't reasonably be expected to know you were being overpaid.

My advice? Put everything in writing, keep a copy, send it Recorded Delivery, and keep notes of all contact with TCO.

(Admittedly, I'm hopeless at taking my own advice, as I tend to phone them and forget about it.)

I'm waffling now so I'll shush, but if anyone has any questions about an overpayment, I'd be happy to try and help. Obviously I'm not an official spokesperson or anything so anything I say is a personal observation..!

trish06

thanks gemA

yes its the wolverhampton tax credit recovery office

this is an overpayment from 2003/04

they first sent me a letter stating i had been over payed by £5000

now i have a letter asking for £8590.94 :mad:

we was entiled to claim,as part of that year we were unemployed and on low income

every time i phone ,they tell me its to late to do anything about
it have sinse moved to devon,they have my new address,i have also sent off an appeal notice to them a few weeks ago,not heard anything back yet
i forgot to make a copy,and did not send by recorded delivery :mad:

yastar

GemA wrote: »

I work on Tax Credits Recovery for HMRC, and I've never heard of anyone being charged interest on their Overpayment - I don't mean to challenge your statement, I'd just be interested to know which department issued the demand, and how they work out the interest. (I don't want to tell people, "There's never interest on Tax Credits" if it's wrong!)

I spend every day phoning people who have been overpaid Tax Credits. Usually I spend five minutes explaining how the overpayment arose - overlap in claims, late notification of change of circumstances, non-return of declaration form etc - then another ten minutes or more listening to the catalogue of errors perpetrated by Tax Credit Office.

Some days I feel more like a counsellor than a debt collector.

Frequently I have to stop myself from telling them that the same thing happened to me, that I'm currently paying back my overpayment from when I split up with my ex, and other unprofessional things!

I see a lot of disputes go through to TCO. And I see a lot of notes made on their system along the lines of: "Dispute action complete, Overpayment is fully recoverable."

Basically, if you just want to have a whinge about how rubbish they are, you won't get anywhere. You have to have a valid point about errors they have made, and that you couldn't reasonably be expected to know you were being overpaid.

My advice? Put everything in writing, keep a copy, send it Recorded Delivery, and keep notes of all contact with TCO.

(Admittedly, I'm hopeless at taking my own advice, as I tend to phone them and forget about it.)

I'm waffling now so I'll shush, but if anyone has any questions about an overpayment, I'd be happy to try and help. Obviously I'm not an official spokesperson or anything so anything I say is a personal observation..!

Please could you suggest what I could do to avoid potential overpayment. I work full time. Husband was on incapacity benefits (high rate) until this January when he went for a medical and they said that he has failed medical so benefit stopped. My husband has appealed as the condition is the same as previous year (when he did get incap benefit after another appeal was won by us). If I inform tax office then my payment may be affected as technically he is no longer classed as disabled. However, if we win appeal (which can take up to one year for decision) then we can only claim back last three months award. Is that right? We pay about £8000 a year in childcare for one child. Any suggestions? I don't want to phone tax office yet as last time I did it a year ago, my payment was stopped and when we won the appeal for incap benefit our payment was not backdated for the whole period. we potentially lost some CTC. Would love your views. thanks

ellat257

What do you do when they admitt it was their mistake, they admitt you told them numerous times that the notices were wrong and they still insist you have to pay it back? MP useless just had 2nd notice back from director office. The only thing I get is a headache!






Due 19/08/07 - 22 weeks and counting!

creamtea_2

sign the above and also look up

http://www.taxcreditoverpayment.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/1.html

We simply MUST stop this disgraceful situation

also add your name

http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/taxmistakes/

creamtea_2

Thanks Martin - your support is welcome

Jinty_2

My advice to anyone who has problems with tax credits is to visit your local Citizens Advice Bureau. The advisors there can help by accessing a CAB only helpline number and it is staffed by qualified managers, and usually the problems can be sorted out. Overpayments can be explained and if they are to be paid back, negotiated payments can be arranged. Problems with overpayments tax credits usually occur when the claimants do not notify any change of circumstances straightaway and to make sure that the tax credit personnel have entered it immediately onto your file. Hope this helps.

lebly

Filled it in - thanks. Four years and counting for them to sort out the overpayment caused by their error. Not holding my breath that it will make an impact though but worth a try!

GemA_2

trish06:

It won't be interest, but something has changed. Ask them what it is. They might have added an Overpayment from another year, or they might have made a change on your record - either way, you can ask them why there are different amounts on the demands.

yastar:

That's a tricky one. With my official hat on, I will say that you are legally obliged to inform them of the change. But... you've done that before and been stung. If you choose to keep quiet about it, then I would highly recommend you put the "extra" money to one side, just in case you eventually lose your appeal on the Incapacity Benefit. Then, if you end up with an overpayment, you are able to pay it back straight away and your halo remains intact. (And if your appeal succeeds, so the IB is reinstated, then you've got a nice savings fund to treat yourself with.)

ellat257:

If you knew it was wrong and you kept telling them, why did you spend it?

And I will agree with Jinty that if you are confused or frustrated, it may help to go through the CAB.