Overpaid Salary

togadambennett

My former employer from 2011 has sent a letter to my parents address stating that I was overpaid during my final salary payment. I'm not sure how they got that address as I haven't lived there for over 6 years. I now live in South Korea.


The employer contacted me first in late 2012 to state that they had overpaid me, at which time I wrote to them to request proof and details of where they had overpaid. I received nothing in response.


They are now requesting that I repay them amount again...this time via a solicitor... What steps should I take from here? In the past I already requested proof but it was not provided so assumed it was the end of the situation.


I have no plan to return to the UK in the next 4 years other than for short visits and have no assets in the UK.

CalumHeath

Write back (without the unnecessary expense of a solicitor) explaining that you do not agree you were overpaid and that if the former employer maintains their position, in order for you to consider it further you would need to be provided with the exact amount they believe they have overpaid you together with evidence to substantiate their claim it was an error.

The solicitor will charge your former employer for each response (that's generally how solicitors work) and they may get bored of that - depends on the sum they're chasing I suppose.

Unless of course you know you were overpaid in which case you should make arrangements to pay it back or just ignore it until it either goes away or is escalated. I'm not sure how much they can escalate it with you being in South Korea and this being a civil (rather than criminal) matter.

sourcrates

Hi,
As you have asked for proof of the overpayment, and none has been forthcoming, you could play letter tennis with them, as per the advice of the above poster, or you could ignore them.

The only problem would be if they were to go to court over this, whilst you may not have any UK assets, it appears the address they have for you is your parents address, this may cause issues for them, although they would not be liable, it could cause unnessessary aggravation fir them.

Tixy

Your parents may want to return the letter to the solicitor stating on the envelope that you do not live at that address.

matttye

There is a legal obligation to pay back money paid to you in error (see the case of R v Gilks [1972]) but you are entitled to ask for evidence.