Officials are aware of the mounting number of instances where UK carers are at risk of racking up overpayments that can in some cases lead to crippling debt, but for five years have chosen not to investigate all cases.
Overpayments happen when someone who claims £81 a week carer's allowance, often for looking after a frail, disabled or ill relative, breaches a strict earnings cap, which means they cannot earn more that £151 a week in a paid job.
If the carer breaches that limit, even by a penny, their whole allowance is deemed to be an overpayment, which the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) forces them to repay. In some cases carers have been taken to court.
The DWP has been accused of "burying its head in the sand" after it emerged ministers put in place only enough staff to check half of the alerts it receives when carers' benefits are deemed "overpayments". The failure to identify and notify carers of breaches for months and sometimes years is at the centre of a scandal, revealed by the Guardian, which has pushed people into debt and ill health, stripped them of savings, and in one case their home.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der May 10, 2024-Ausgabe von The Guardian.
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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der May 10, 2024-Ausgabe von The Guardian.
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