Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 3 March to Question 156242 on Carer's Allowance: Overpayments, what information her Department holds on the starting date and durations of the overpayments of Carer’s Allowance first identified in (a) 2018-19, (b) 2019-20 and (c) 2020-21.
The Government recognises and appreciates the vital role unpaid carers play in supporting loved ones who are ill, frail or disabled.
The Carer’s Allowance debts referred to Debt Management in each of the last 3 years, reflect individual overpayments; the starting dates and durations will therefore vary accordingly.
However, the average lengths of the recoverable Carer’s Allowance overpayments referred to Debt Management in each of the requested years was as follows:
| 2018/2019 | 2019/2020 | 2020/2021 YTD |
Average Length (Days) | 164 | 213 | 135 |
I can also confirm that the median start dates for those overpayments were:
| 2018/2019 | 2019/2020 | 2020/2021 YTD |
Median Start Date | 06/11/2017 | 17/12/2018 | 09/12/2019 |
These overpayments have arisen in the main because changes have not been reported on time. DWP takes every care to explain a claimant’s responsibilities when they apply for Carer’s Allowance; this includes the need to report changes on time. The Department has improved Carer’s Allowance communications to make this even clearer.
New technology and additional staffing have now made it easier to identify and prevent overpayments.
Notes: