Universal Credit - paid wages twice in AP

ginge001

Hi, apologies if this has been answered already but I couldn’t find anything recent. This month my employer will pay me early on the 17th instead of the 31st. This means I’ll have received two wage payments in one assessment period. I’ve contacted UC to ask if the payment on the 17th can be moved into the next assessment period but they said no. However, I’ve read conflicting information saying that from 16 November 2020 people paid monthly can have it changed manually if they inform their work coach. Does anyone know? Or anyone had success with getting theirs moved? Many thanks 

calcotti

They are wrong to refuse. Put a note on your journal asking them to exercise their discretion to make the change and reallocate the payment in accordance with regulation 61(6) of the Universal Credit Regulations 2013 as amended by the Universal Credit (Earned Income) Amendment Regulations 2020.

You are correct that these regulations came into effect on 16th November 2020 and that they only apply to people paid monthly.

See https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2020/1138/made which amends the Universal Credit Regulations 2013 regulation 61 to include

Information for calculating earned income – real time information etc.
61.....
Reallocation of reported payments
(5) Where it appears to the Secretary of State that a payment of employed earnings has been reported late, or otherwise reported in the wrong assessment period, the Secretary of State may determine that the payment is to be treated as employed earnings in the assessment period in which it was received.
(6) Where a person is engaged in an employment where they are paid on a regular monthly basis and more than one payment in relation to that employment is reported in the same assessment period, the Secretary of State may, for the purposes of maintaining a regular pattern, determine that one of those payments is to be treated as employed earnings in respect of a different assessment period.
.....

tomtom256

There is a to-do either your work coach, if you have work coach or a case manager, can raise it. Once raised it takes about 48 hours for it to be sorted and re-attributed to the correct assessment period. It can't be done prior to it occurring though. So as soon as the assessement period ends and your statement has been produced, ring up and ask them to raise it.

It is farily new, but a briefing note was sent out to all Jobcentres about.

calcotti

tomtom256 said:

There is a to-do either your work coach, if you have work coach or a case manager, can raise it. Once raised it takes about 48 hours for it to be sorted and re-attributed to the correct assessment period. It can't be done prior to it occurring though. So as soon as the assessement period ends and your statement has been produced, ring up and ask them to raise it.

It is farily new, but a briefing note was sent out to all Jobcentres about.

So a claimant cannot give UC advance warning, they can only report the problem and request reallocation after the payment statement has been prepared? 

ginge001

Thanks so much tomtom, this is really helpful. I’ll add a note to my journal and raise it as soon as my assessment period ends
on the 23rd...if anyone is around to deal with it over Christmas! 

ginge001

Sorry Calcotti, just saw you replied too. Many thanks for taking the time, it’s mu CJ appreciated. 

calcotti

ginge001 said:

Sorry Calcotti, just saw you replied too. Many thanks for taking the time, it’s mu CJ appreciated. 

A key point for anyone reading this is that the power to reallocate an earnings payment in these circumstances is a discretionary power. As I understand it reallocation will not be done routinely or automatically, it will only be done if requested by the claimant.

calcotti

See also https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2020-12-02/124183

A_Lert

Reportedly employers can, when submitting the data to HMRC, put down the standard contractual pay day even if the actual pay day is earlier or later. But it seems like not many employers do this.

https://www.litrg.org.uk/tax-guides/coronavirus-guidance/universal-credit-and-employee-pay

calcotti

A_Lert said:

Reportedly employers can, when submitting the data to HMRC, put down the standard contractual pay day even if the actual pay day is earlier or later. But it seems like not many employers do this.

https://www.litrg.org.uk/tax-guides/coronavirus-guidance/universal-credit-and-employee-pay

That’s what employers are meant to do. (Note the litrg guidance referenced has not been updated to take into account the new regulations.)

tomtom256

calcotti said:

So a claimant cannot give UC advance warning, they can only report the problem and request reallocation after the payment statement has been prepared? 

Yes thats how I understand it. I can only presume it's do to with how and when the RTI data is received, just in case the employer puts the paid date as the normal pay date, even though they have paid it early and/or it may be treated as an MR request.