Exceptional Needs payment debt recovery

Baby01032012

Hi all,

And thank you for taking the time to read this. A friend of mine received the above payment a number of years ago. My friends circumstances have not changed. However they received a letter from DSP stating that they owe DSP this money. They have proposed to recover this debt by way of weekly deductions from their current social welfare payments.

I had no idea what the payment was so had to google it. I cannot find any information to say that the payment received is in effect a loan and should be repaid which is in effect what the letter is saying to my friend. Also the amount stated on the letter is much more than my friend claims he received.

Anyone with experience or knowledge of this payment and that it has to be repaid? Especially as my friends circumstances have not changed.

Many thanks

infogiver

Baby01032012 wrote: »

Hi all,

And thank you for taking the time to read this. A friend of mine received the above payment a number of years ago. My friends circumstances have not changed. However they received a letter from DSP stating that they owe DSP this money. They have proposed to recover this debt by way of weekly deductions from their current social welfare payments.

I had no idea what the payment was so had to google it. I cannot find any information to say that the payment received is in effect a loan and should be repaid which is in effect what the letter is saying to my friend. Also the amount stated on the letter is much more than my friend claims he received.

Anyone with experience or knowledge of this payment and that it has to be repaid? Especially as my friends circumstances have not changed.

Many thanks

If your friend can take the letter and any evidence he has of the ENP ( was it paid into the bank? A bank statement showing money going in? Did your friend get a receipt for the item purchased? A garuntee?) and take it to your local Citizens Information Centre and ask them if they will help him to appeal.
Don't forget that SW will have evidence of how much was paid, when and why, so your friend will need evidence to counter that.
ENPs are not loans that need to be paid back. A person applies for an ENP if they find themselves with an expense that they can't be expected to meet, for example a funeral bill.
The person presents the funeral bill, and evidence of their income, and the CWO decides if financial help is warranted.
If, afterwards, the CWO discovers that there was some deceit involved, then they would be completely correct to ask that the money be repaid.

Baby01032012

Thank you for the information.

Ill give some background information. My friend came here as a refugee. And so was in direction provision centre for a number of years. And received a payment to buy basic utensils. When they received permission to stay and had to find private accomodation they received further assistance to buy basic furniture for their rented apartment share.

Im just perplexed knowing their means how DSP could decide more than 4 years later that they should repay this.

infogiver

Baby01032012 wrote: »

Thank you for the information.

Ill give some background information. My friend came here as a refugee. And so was in direction provision centre for a number of years. And received a payment to buy basic utensils. When they received permission to stay and had to find private accomodation they received further assistance to buy basic furniture for their rented apartment share.

Im just perplexed knowing their means how DSP could decide more than 4 years later that they should repay this.

Having not seen the overpayment letter from DSP then I couldn't comment. As I said, your friend should take the letter and any evidence they have of the ENP to the CIC and ask for help to make an appeal.
There's no point in arguing with the CWO about wether or not they have the "right " to decide that there has been an overpayment. The onus is on your friend to show that there HASNT been an overpayment, not the other way round.

Balagan

Exceptional Needs Payments in respect of kitting out a home for the first time and for one time only are often divided between a small payment directly to the individual to be used for small items such as small kitchen items, cutlery, sheets etc., and a larger payment for approved items such as a washing machine/cooker/beds. For the more expensive items, the cheque would be made out to the shop/s from whom the invoice was approved. The whole payment is means tested and not repayable. If there has been a subsequent discovery that all means were not disclosed at the time of the means test, then a request for repayment would be likely.

Baby01032012

Balagan wrote: »

Exceptional Needs Payments in respect of kitting out a home for the first time and for one time only are often divided between a small payment directly to the individual to be used for small items such as small kitchen items, cutlery, sheets etc., and a larger payment for approved items such as a washing machine/cooker/beds. For the more expensive items, the cheque would be made out to the shop/s from whom the invoice was approved. The whole payment is means tested and not repayable. If there has been a subsequent discovery that all means were not disclosed at the time of the means test, then a request for repayment would be likely.

Thanks Balagan. My friend had a home in the country he came from. He told them about it from day 1. He sold it maybe a year ago and paid off debts he had.

I've helped him write a letter to DSP asking for more information.