Carer's Allowance - why are so many people being forced to pay money back to DWP

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Unpaid carers are being forced to repay benefits by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) after breaching earnings rules by just a few pounds.

Some are also threatened with prosecution and have been given criminal records. The Guardian reports that "tens of thousands" of people - most of which are from low income households and are caring for sick and disabled relatives - are being forced to pay back Carer's Allowance.

For example, we recently reported on how supermarket worker Helen Grater was told to pay back almost £6,000 after she took on an extra shift at Sainsbury's while caring for her seriously unwell partner. Full-time carer and dad-of-three George Henderson was forced to sell his home - or face jail - after he was prosecuted because he was overpaid Carer's Allowance.

Carer's Allowance is worth £81.90 a week and is awarded if you care for someone at least 35 hours a week. The person you care for must also be claiming certain benefits, such as Personal Independence Payment. So why are so many carers being forced to repay their Carer's Allowance?

Have you been forced to repay Carer's Allowance? Let us know: mirror.money.saving@mirror.co.uk

Why are people having to pay back Carer's Allowance?

You're allowed to work while claiming Carer's Allowance - but there is an earnings limit which you cannot breach. The earnings limit is currently just £151 a week after tax, National Insurance, pension contributions and allowable expenses. If your earnings go over the limit - even by just £1 - you lose your entitlement to Carer's Allowance.

If you are paid weekly, and you go over the earnings limit, you lose your entitlement to Carer's Allowance for the following week. When you are paid monthly, you lose your Carer's Allowance for the following month.

Carers say the rules for how much you earn can be confusing - particularly if your hours change, or your pay increases. Then there are people who see their earnings fluctuate. If your earnings vary each week, or each month, then your average earnings is used to determine your eligibility for Carer's Allowance.

Helen Walker, Chief Executive of Carers UK, said: "A wholescale reform and review of Carer's Allowance and other carers' benefits is needed to ensure these adequately support unpaid carers during the time they spend caring for someone and so that the system does not punish them for misinterpreting complicated and harsh earnings rules.

"It's shocking that there has been so little investment in the way that Carer's Allowance is operated and the tight rules mean that many carers who need it, aren't getting it. It's even worse when you consider how much unpaid carers' support is worth, which is billions every year."

Are some carers being prosecuted?

The DWP has prosecuted some claimants for benefit fraud, which means those affected have been left with a criminal record. In one case, prosecutors used the Proceeds of Crime Act to recover the £16,000 inheritance left to Vivienne Groom by her mother after she was overpaid Carer's Allowance.

Mrs Groom said she did not declare her job, which saw her work 16 hours a week at the Co-op, after being advised by a social worker that she did not need to. In response to her case, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer told the BBC: "Something's gone very wrong here."

The 2019 inquiry by MPs into overpayments of Carer's Allowance found most issues were down to "honest mistakes" by carers. It concluded that most cases were not fraudulent.

What does the DWP say?

In February last year, the DWP said it was pursuing 145,567 overpayments of Carers Allowance. The BBC reports that benefits staff get automatic alerts from HMRC when someone breaches the Carer's Allowance earnings threshold, but the DWP has said it is down to claimants to report a change in circumstance and to check their eligibility.

A DWP spokesperson said: "Carers across the UK are unsung heroes who make a huge difference to someone else's life and we have increased Carer's Allowance by almost £1,500 since 2010. We are committed to fairness in the welfare system, with safeguards in place for managing repayments, while protecting the public purse.

"Claimants have a responsibility to inform DWP of any changes in their circumstances that could impact their award, and it is right that we recover taxpayers' money when this has not occurred."