All carer’s allowance overpayment alerts to be checked, says DWP

The government is bringing in extra staff to make sure carer’s allowance overpayment alerts are dealt with promptly.

According to the National Audit Office, carer’s allowance overpayment debts have soared to £250m.

That’s up from £100m in 2018.

Figures also show that the number of people with outstanding payment debts rose from 80,169 in 2018-19 to 136,730 in 2023/24 - an increase of 71%.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) had been working to check half of all overpayment alerts.

But it’s now bringing in 20 extra people to bolster its team so that all alerts are checked.

"We are drafting in extra staff so the backlog of all under- and overpayments are investigated promptly and corrected,” a DWP spokesperson.

"We will agree affordable repayment plans and when issuing debt management notifications, signpost to independent advice services.”

How do overpayments cause debt?

If you're caring for someone for at least 35 hours a week due to illness or disability, you may be eligible an allowance for £83.30 a week.  

To qualify, you must earn no more than £196 per week.  

But if you earn just £1 above the weekly limit, you lose all entitlement to carer’s allowance and have to repay the entire amount back.  

This can cause overpayments to quickly build up, creating financial difficulty and debt.  

Carers are legally required to report any changes in their circumstances. 

The DWP is now extending a trial of text message reminders to help carers “fully understand their responsibility to report changes in their circumstances”.

Charity cautiously welcomes pledge to deal with overpayments alerts

The government’s commitment to checking 100% of overpayments alerts has been welcomed by the charity Carers UK.

“When the alerts target was set at 50%, thousands of carers have been missed and experienced large and damaging overpayments, in a situation that could have been largely avoided,” said chief executive Helen Walker.

However, she warned that tens of thousands of carers would still be hit with overpayments until the new policy took effect.

“As the [DWP] works to clear the current backlog, the human cost of a system which needed an overhaul years ago will still continue to rise,” Ms Walker said.

“Sadly, clearing the backlog is likely to result in a further rise for overpayments debts.”  

Review into carer’s allowance overpayment underway

The government has already launched an independent review into carer’s allowance overpayments, which will look at issues including:

• how overpayments happened
• how to support those affected
• how to prevent overpayments happening in the future

The review's findings are expected by summer 2025. 

Help and support for carers  

If you’re a carer, you might be eligible for financial support. 

Check out our guide on what help is available for carers to find out more.