Overpayment from old employer

Confusedcash

I just wanted to know where I stand in regards to rights if any. I left my former employer in June and recieved money from them up until July. I thought July was my last month of payment from them and was shocked to see I was paid in August. As soon as I saw the money in my account I was worried to touch it, so I called up their employee services department. When I called I asked if was a mistake and I was told that it wasn't and that I was free to spend the money. I asked one more time and was told that the money was mine. So fast forward to yesterday, I recieve a letter that I have been overpaid. And that a notification was sent round informing everyone. I have not heard anything about a notification till I phoned up to query this. What are my rights if any?

Manxman_in_exile

I would have thought you'll be paying it back.


But out of curiosity, when you rang to query the August payment did you point out that you had left in June? And did they give you a plausible explanation as to why you were still being paid in August?


From the letter you refer to it sounds like all(?) your old colleagues have been overpaid in August due to some payroll error, (You don't say what's in the letter). This doesn't explain why you were still on the payroll.


Have you checked if you've been paid in September? I've known errors like this in the NHS.

YouAsked

I'm sympathetic, but I doubt you can prove the conversation happened the way you outline. It was probably naive to spend the money without having something in writing, but that doesn't help yo much now.

I think things are stacked against you...you have a verbal conversation with no evidence as to what was discussed. They have a written notification to you telling you the money is not yours.

That said, the timescales involved seem long - maybe you have an argument regarding what you could have reasonably believed given the time elapsed before they wrote to you? From what I can see, it is nearly two months. I can't find anything definitive on that but they may compromise given their lack of timely action?

Undervalued

Yes.

99% of the time any accidental overpayment has to be paid back.

There have been one or two exceptions where the employee has been able to show that they genuinely had good reason to believe that they were entitled to the money. An employee of Barclay's bank won such as case but it is rare.

Even if the two conversations you had with them had been in writing I am not sure even that would have been enough although it may have tipped the balance against them forcing the issue.

sangie595

Undervalued wrote: »

Yes.

99% of the time any accidental overpayment has to be paid back.

There have been one or two exceptions where the employee has been able to show that they genuinely had good reason to believe that they were entitled to the money. An employee of Barclay's bank won such as case but it is rare.

Even if the two conversations you had with them had been in writing I am not sure even that would have been enough although it may have tipped the balance against them forcing the issue.

I agree. In the end, no matter what they might have foolishly told you, you knew that you had left the employment and could not possibly still be owed a wage two months later. So you must have known it wasn't yours to spend, because you hadn't earned it.