Dwp Seeking Repayment After Mum Passed.

[Donetello1561]

We lost my Mum in October last year aged 92, and had a solicitor to deal with the probate etc.I rang round all the services gas,electric,water and everything else we could think of.
However after the house was sold in January this year we recieved a letter from the Solicitor advising us the DWP had an issue with an overpayment,no other information was provided.They have asked for bank statements back to 2003.
The question is how long do they normally take to investigate this,given we have had no further information or contact from them since the initial letter at the beginning of February.

[Iamcazzy]

There is no time limit on their investigation or assessment of money owed. They can and will recover overpayments at any time in the future following the death of a claimant. The law allows them to do this based on the principle that any money owed is part of the "public purse" and is recoverable at any time.

The fact that you or your solicitor has had no contact with them since February is immaterial. It may be that they were conducting further inquiries into your late Mum's DWP entitlement. The DWP are notorious in moving slowly when investigating such matters. Nevertheless, they recover millions in overpayments annually and even have a dedicated overpayment recovery unit that will fight tooth and nail to recover money due back to the exchequer.

Your Solicitor will undoubtedly tell you to pay the sum due but you can negotiate installment payments in the event of hardship.

[237SJ]

When my Mum died I had letters from the DWP within a few weeks asking for their money back - they are quite quick. However, if my solicitor is anything to go by (and she still hasn`t finalised the probate details after 13 months) it could well be that your solicitor has been sitting on the letter from the DWP.

[Donetello1561]

First off thanks for the replys.
We are not disputing the fact she may have been overpaid by them,and have no issue repaying it,The issue is how long does it take to access the figures and arrive at a conclusion,we just want to sort it out and move on.

[Iamcazzy]

As I said in my first sentence, there is no timescale for the DWP to access any figures and arrive at a conclusion. They work at their own pace based on their workload. Simple matters might take weeks as occurred in 237SJ's case. However, given that they've asked for bank statements going back to 2003 in your case, it's clear that the issue is more complex. It could be many months before they arrive at a conclusion and there is absolutely nothing you can do to persuade them to process the case more rapidly.

We all want to sort affairs like this out and move on after a death but the DWP has to ensure that the correct assessment has been made in each case.

[Iamcazzy]

You might consider giving them a ring or writing to them to ask for further communications to be sent to your home address rather than your solicitor. You would have to be an Executor on the estate for them to sanction this though.

This would avoid further delays if your solicitor is sitting on the paperwork before notifying you of any letters from the DWP. Most solicitors charge for writing to a client. If the DWP are agreeable, let your solicitor know that from now on, you are dealing with the DWP>

[wolf63]

If the DWP have asked for the bank statements the most likely cause of an overpayment will either be (1) too much capital held or (2) an income that had not been declared.

Was your mum still living in her house when she died?

I am sorry that I can't be of more help

[granny grump]

We had a letter within days of my father-in-law dying instructing us not to try and collect his pension in case of over payments. Apparently they have a specific department that deals with this and seems to work much quicker than any of their other departments. They couldn't get the spelling of his name correct though

[Gromit]

When my mother died we had a similar letter. Once probate was done we were unsure what to do about money that they might want repaying, so we held back some money from the will. Months later, they finally said nothing was owed.
Since then, I have been told by a friend at DWP, that they rarely make a claim.

[Donetello1561]

There was around 10k in her bank account and after funeral costs it was down to around 5k.This was mostly built up because like any family we put together to buy things for her TV,washer etc.
We also maintained the house and gardens between us,and my sister showered and dressed her as she became to frail to do it herself the last few years.
We know she was getting pension credit but don't know how this came about,as no one can recall her filling anything in or ever recall a reassessment.

[EDDIE51]

The CAB are VERY good at sorting out problems like this and completely free.
Get you solicitor's off the case ( they are almost certainly charging you at least £50 a letter) and get the CAB to help. They sorted out a similar problem for me over the phone to the DWP. The CAB have special direct lines to the various benefit agencies , that are not available to the general public or even to solicitors .

[Donetello1561]

Thanks Eddie,it may be worth a call to them to see if they can help.

[bednobs]

bah, we were four weeks late telling the DWp my mil was in hospital and she got fined too!

[Peter Pedant]

I am unsure - CAB seems like a good idea - wanting statements back to 2003 is not really compatible with a little over payment later 2015-6

also you need to make sure that the overpayment is in fact 'true' and that they arent coming it by saying "we think it is £5000" when they have no idea and are relying on the fact that you cant refute it
( surely not surely not - a govt dept wouldnt do THAT would they ? )

[Peter Pedant]

with one of my tenants - I did it the next day
and got some pretty odd looks ....
and they were making odd faces and going like: " what are you telling us for ?"

[because there are rules about paying pensions to dead people ...]
and that earned another round of grimacing and weird faces ....

[EDDIE51]

Problem here is that the solicitors probably know or have a very good idea how much the DWP say is owed. But they are spinning it out so as to generate the maximum possible income for themselves (at £50 a page for the letters to both you and the DWP it will not take long for the solicitors fees to be more than the overpayment if it even exists!)
The CAB WILL be able to sort this and as I said it will cost nothing .

[themas]

As PP says, do NOT just accept what DWP tell you. Make sure you get a detailed breakdown of what was paid and how they have calculated what her entitlement was. Also, send them a copy of bank statements & keep the originals so you can check whatever figures they come up with.

If they say there were errors in her original pension credit claim insist on getting a copy of the claim form from them to check.

I've known of two cases of people who were getting pension credit & then died. DWP queried both of them - like you, without giving any details. It seemed like a fishing expedition. In the end they did not want any money back from either.

[Donetello1561]

Thanks all who have taken time to answer and help,I have googled the situation and there are some shocking stories and as said it seems that they are trying anything to claw back payments.Even sometimes if it has been their error to start with.
Thanks and we will be requesting a full breakdown of when and how much they say has been overpaid if it comes to it.My Mum was a wonderful person and I miss her everyday,and I know she would not have knowingly claimed for something she was not entitled to.

[EDDIE51]

Yes, good work. But get the solicitors off the case or they will grab a chunk of cash for themselves when people like' themas' are giving good advice for free.
The DWP will very possibly back down when they realise you are not going to just 'roll over' and pay up.