overpaid - how often can they deduct payback

[evedawn]

i have been overpaid for the past 3 month. I HONESTLY did not realise it (my payslip is confusing as I have 3 different hourly rates for different tasks that I do and my hours vary from month to month)

They want tot ake the full amount back off next months payslip. I realise they can deduct what I have been overpaid but surely this needs to be done in monthly increments? not in one lump sum? what is the maximum percentage of the overpayment they can take each month?

[Skyline D]

There isn't a maximum percentage of the overpayment so far as I know.

I think (but am not certain) that there IS a maximum percentage of your gross pay that can be deducted though. I think it's about 50% but I'm not an authority on it.

[evedawn]

ok - thanks skyline. I "thought" i'd heard that employers could only deduct 10% each month until overpayment was paid off. but perhaps i heard wrong. thanks for your answer

[mrs_overall]

One of my sisters was overpaid (over a year) nearly �1300. The employer (a local county council) wrote demanding it back within 5 days.
She wrote to them saying she couldn't afford it and offered them �20 a month which they accepted.

If it's their mistake, don't be bullied into repayments you cannot afford.

If you're in a union, have a word with the rep.

[anniebird]

I have been in the position of deducting such overpayments from staff and have always thought that a fair way was to take the amounts over the same period as they were paid. This would mean you would pay back over 3 months. Perhaps if you told them that this could cause hardship and offer to repay over 6 months you may be able to negotiate the 3 months. After all it was their initial error and I can understand why you may have had problems spotting that you had been overpaid.

[zebra]

Same thing happened to me, I genuinely didn't realise as I had returned to work after maternity leave & a career break, to a completely new working pattern/salary etc. I had even double checked with payroll at the time as my figures differed but they put it down to change in tax code etc. Only found out on next years renewal contract when I supplied same information.

Once I put my case forward & appealed with all my reasons, they wrote off the overpayment. Similar happened with someone else but they realised in the 2nd salary that they were being overpaid and corrected it and applied to repay back under hardship rules and repay �10 per month.

Good Luck!