tax credit overpayments new report published

Dammam

Wouldn't you know it - today they're claiming to have OVERPAYED us by £5000 or so from 2003. The good thing is, we at least have custody of the money at the moment.
For all the stress this has caused, I have a good mind to tell them to just stop payment until they've recouped whatever they want. The money we have now is needed to pay off bills and loans accrued in the 12 months we received nothing. At £77 per month, it should be all square by February 2008!

Just out of interest, they said they overpaid in 2003 and 2004, but in April 2004 they changed the previous payment (albeit very slightly) and they stopped paying us between October 2004 and April 2005 due to the overpayment. Surely they can't just go back and say they overpaid us more than they thought at the time? How are people supposed to budget?

My wife called and asked why they have just paid us if they think we owe them money, but the operator said it was because awards and collections are totally different areas! What a way to run a department.

Tazdevil

aroma44 wrote:

I have received good news......... 2003/2004 over payment was their fault, but they didn't look into 2004/2005 or 2005 to present so have filled in another dispute from as circumstances were the same. So it really is worth doing if you are in the right.

Is this true?? Tax credits told me the over paid me for the year 2003/2004 do I still owe them money? I have never been able to find out exactly how to calculate the tax credit award for my self to double check their figures. My last correspondence I had from them said I was not entitled to any tax credits this year (which is OK by me), but it made no reference that I owed any tax credits back. What do I do now?

Tazdevil

Has anybody read my question? do I still need to worry?

Fran

Taz,

I would suggest going to Citizens Advice, they will be able to check your entitlement and tell you where you stand.

ladybez

And I thought it was only me having problems. I owed about 3.500 from 2003/4 and smaller sums for the following 2 years. Having failed to collect the monthly amount it was agreed I would repay, from the mandate I signed (because there was only my signature and not both of ours) and not advising me, when I offered to rescedule over a further 12 months I could only do this with all my husbands details, which I do not have, \I was told I would not be able to split the debt over the next 7 months as it would be too expensive!! I offered to repay in full and then was asked where i would get the money!! I was tempted to be rude did post them a cheque last week. I have spent the last two days trying to find out if it has been received. I am sorry I ever claimed

Tracy0403

Hi I have emailed previousley on this thread with these details but that was a while ago. Since then the campaign has had nationwide support and we are preparing to present the petition to the House Of Commons very soon. Please read below and if you have been a victim please sign the petition. Every signature gives us more weight to fight back.

Site: https://www.taxdiscredit.co.uk
Email: info@taxdiscredit.co.uk


My name is Tracy McGowan and I am a single mother with two children. This is a website that I have set up and the petition is to be presented to the House of Commons as a voice for the thousands upon thousands of people in this country who have been affected by the disgraceful tax credit system. It has already received an overwhelming response from people all over the country in support of reforms within the system.

Since this campaign began I have been inundated with pleas for help following press coverage of my own case. I have personally been involved in a few such cases but unfortunately cannot help every single one. The system is such that even with the help of the Citizen’s Advice Bureau and local MP’s (who do a fantastic job) thousands are still being pursued for overpayments that have been caused by IT errors, mis/non-processing of information by the tax credit office and overly complicated systems of calculations.

My own story, without boring you with every detail, is that the tax credit office told me that I owed £9,998 in overpayments over a two-year period (My total income for those two years did not even add up to that much!). So ensued an 18-month battle. Firstly their IT system ‘stuck’ (tax credits technical word – not mine) my claim in their system for 15 months. Secondly they cost me a job due to 4 months of no-payments despite a monthly bill of childcare of £700. Lastly they cost me another 18 months of lengthy telephone calls, being subjected to the apathy of the helpline (if the calls were answered at all) and having to visit CAB offices and my local MP.

Without going into all the details I decided to take a more pro-active approach. I knew through friends and family that my plight was only the tip of the iceberg. Many people I know have had similar problems big and small. I knew we each had our own individual battles ahead and was very angry that the government (who are there to represent us) were refusing to accept the level of responsibility they should for the massive problems they have caused for thousands of people. I was also angry at being ‘stone-walled’ at every opportunity and this made me investigate the scale of the problem further.

I was appalled at my findings, referred to on the homepage and of many other blatant misconceptions on the part of the government. The biggest problems have been the very complicated calculation in working out entitlements. I have yet to speak to one person at the TCO, and I have spoken to many, who can explain how your entitlement is calculated. Their loophole in clawing back overpayments is by stating that ‘we will not ask you to pay back an overpayment if it was reasonable for you to assume that the award was correct’. Well…..if they cant even explain how to calculate it…how on earth could we. If we give them the correct information then we have to assume that they can work it out correctly??????

In the Written Ministerial Statement for the 5th June 2006 The Chief Secretary to the Treasury (Mr Stephen Timms) spoke of the 'clear procedures in place to ensure that recovery of overpayments does not create hardship' (paragraph 4). I have asked the treasury for a copy of these ‘clear policies’ but have still to receive a response after a month. When they claimed I owed £10,000 they stopped all of my tax credits. As you are probably aware when you receive any kind of benefit you used to receive money for yourself and for your children. That is no longer the case, now the child tax credits replace the money you would receive thought your benefits for your children. Therefore stopping my child tax credits meant I had to live on £29.00 per week for both my children and me. Where are these ‘clear policies’ then?

This petition is not only for people in receipt of tax credits. This is taxpayer’s money that is being scandalously mis-managed so it affects every single tax payer. The Government release these wonderful figures of how tax credits have lifted thousands of families out of poverty…what about the thousands that are facing poverty because of that same system.

The Petition is not opposing the tax credit system. I think if it was managed correctly and simplified then it would be a fantastic support to thousands of families but as it stands it is failing as many. The Goverment need to accept the responsibility of these errors instead of ‘spinning’ figures to shed a good light on a system which we know is costing millions of tax payers money, through underpayments, overpayments and fraud.

I BEG YOU TO SIGN THE PETITION AND HAVE YOUR VOICE HEARD. THE GOVERNMENT NEED TO KNOW THAT IT IS NO LONGER ACCEPTABLE TO US FOR THEIR ERRORS TO BE BRUSHED UNDER THE CARPER AND IGNORED.

THIS AFFECTS EVERY SINGLE TAX PAYER, CHILD AND WORKING PARENT IN THIS COUNTRY. WE DO LIVE IN A DEMOCRACY AND OUR VOICE, COLLECTIVELY, SHOULD BE HEARD TO PUT AND END TO THIS.

Kindest Regards

Tracy McGowan

creamtea_2

[url]http://www.taxcreditoverpayment.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk:A[/url]

this site is very supportive - links to help

BlueSkyDay

Hi all

I have a tax credit overpayment of £4329. I spoke to someone at HM Debt management to arrange repayment and went through all my debt. I offered £10 a month as I really can't afford anything else - can't even afford that, really. This was agreed & they sent me a direct debit form.

I got a letter on Friday informing me that my WEEKLY direct debit had been set up and that £10 would be taken out of my account on 4 dates in the month - making the monthly payment £40. :mad: :mad:

I find it difficult to believe that this has been done accidentally! Who arranges weekly direct debits when they are paid monthly??

I will now have to go through another phone call about it. It has spurred me on to write to my MP to complain about it.

I really, really wish I had never applied for it.

Blue

creamtea_2

:T petitiononline.com/tco1/2

useful site
taxcreditoverpayment.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk

Lillys_mum

We have been overpaid for this current year by almost £1700 which they have recovered so far by stopping our payments from July until the end of the tax year in April 07.

This overpayment occured due to them inputting my husbands income wrong. I told them how much it was and they put it on the form as £o

Whose mistake is this and do we have any grounds to complain and possibly dispute the overpayment.

Thanks guys