'Unpaid carers pursued for £9m benefit overpayments'

Almost 5,000 unpaid carers in Northern Ireland are having overpayments of the Carer's Allowance recovered from them, figures have shown.

Carers NI said £9m of overpayments have been referred to the Department for Communities (DfC) Debt Management branch since 2021.

A DfC spokesperson said that overpayments of Carer's Allowance occur when the department is not updated on changes affecting a person’s entitlement.

When an overpayment happens because of a departmental error or delay, then the department will not pursue recovery, the DfC said.

The figures come in response to an Assembly question from Assembly member Colm Gildernew, where the Department for Communities confirmed "there are currently 4,969 individuals who have Carer's Allowance overpayments being recovered."

'Staggering'

Public Affairs manager at Carers NI, Craig Harrison, said the figures show "the staggering scale of the Carer’s Allowance overpayments scandal in Northern Ireland".

"Nearly one in every 10 claimants of the benefit here are being pursued for overpayments" he added.

"Why isn’t the department intervening earlier to stop carers building up such enormous debts? Why isn’t there a system in place to flag overpayments right away, rather than weeks or months later?"

A DfC spokeswoman said the department was working "at pace to find ways of identifying overpayments at the earliest opportunity to prevent the accumulation of these debts.”

What is Carer's Allowance?

Carer’s Allowance is the main social security benefit for unpaid carers in Northern Ireland.

It is provided to those who care for a sick or disabled family member or friend for a minimum of 35 hours per week.

There are over 48,000 recipients of Carer’s Allowance in Northern Ireland and the benefit is worth £81.90 per week.

Carer’s Allowance recipients can earn up to £151 per week in additional income and keep their Carer’s Allowance payments.

Carers NI say that it is up to carers to report any changes in circumstances which results in them earning more than the weekly cap.

Source: Carers NI

The DfC said it was "fully committed to assisting people who are repaying an overpayment debt and experiencing financial difficulties by offering tailored and affordable repayment plans; by signposting people to independent debt advice; and by waiving an overpayment debt in exceptional circumstances."

“People can access this support by contacting the department’s debt management team on 0800 587 1322.

More details are available here.