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Recoverable overpayment caused by partner’s successful appeal
Member of a couple applies for MA. She is turned down (incorrectly) on the earnings condition. She appeals. In the meantime he is signing on, they are receiving couple rate JSA. The MA appeal succeeds, arrears are paid. DWP decide he has a recoverable JSA overpayment due to the “late payment” of partner’s MA. It seems to us that they had not misrepresented or failed to disclose anything, but we presume DWP are using s74 of SSBA 1992, which says that late payment of prescribed income must lead to a recoverable overpayment.
Is there any chance that because it was not just an administratively “late” payment of an MA claim that was being processed, but an MA award subject to a pending appeal, then s74 does not apply?
Or, is there a challenge to one person’s arrears leading to the other person’s benefit being recovered? Sweet and Maxwell suggests CIS/5048/2002 is relevant here, but I can’t find a full copy.
(Salt in the wound is that the overpayment continued a few weeks after the MA appeal decision, and cl then got a civil penalty..).
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Bonus question: MA arrears paid on appeal may also lead to an HB overpayment. Should the MA office’s mistake amount to an official error?
[ Edited: 15 May 2013 at 07:46 pm by Jon (CANY) ]