Benefits claimants have been warned the DWP can impose a £50 fixed rate civil penalty on a person who is overpaid. A person may be overpaid if their circumstances change meaning they should get a reduced amount, but they continue to receive the previous higher payment.
Those who fail to report a change in circumstances risk being forced to pay back part of their claim as well as a £50 fine.
A change in circumstances which could affect a person’s payment include taking up a new job or changing address.
If the Government believes a person deliberately did not report a change, the claimant could be prosecuted for benefit fraud.
This could mean a person losing their benefits altogether and a penalty of up to £5,000. These rules about penalties apply only to benefits and not to tax credits.
READ MORE: Full list of legal changes this month including benefits and minimum wage increase
Only one penalty charge can apply for each overpayment. The penalty will be added to the overpayment amount and would be recovered in the same way.
According to Turn2Us, for a civil penalty to apply the overpayment must have happened after October 1, 2012 and be for an amount of £65.01 or more, and be recoverable.
A person may receive a penalty if they:
- Made an incorrect statement
- Negligently gave incorrect information
- Have not taken ‘reasonable steps’ to correct the error.
Claimants of some means-tested benefits, including Universal Credit, are to receive a £900 cost of living payment over the coming financial year.
The first instalment of £301 will begin arriving in people’s bank accounts between April 25 and May 17.
The state pension is also increasing by 10.1 percent in the new tax year for both the basic and state pension.
The full basic state pension is increasing from £141.85 a week to £156.20 a week while the full new state pension is going up from £185.15 a week to £203.85 a week.
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