Universal credit

You don't get any extra money for a 21 year old my housing element went from a non dependant deduction of £75 per month to bedroom tax of £71 per month when my daughter moved out technically I was about £4 better off 😀

OP don’t panic.

I have some experience of the UC system as they have reviewed my claim recently (standard procedure). I was worried I had been overpaid at some point but it turned out I hadn’t, however before they worked out it was correct the woman was really helpful and completely non judgemental. The message you have received will be standard from a script.

I would reply on your journal saying something like “I am really sorry I didn’t realise I had to declare my daughter leaving because [reason here]. I accept I may have been overpaid and may incur a fine. Please let me know what you need me to do to proceed”.

You would only be prosecuted if they could prove you misled them deliberately.

I can imagine this thousands of people that “forget” to tell UC about a change of circumstance. Can you imagine if everybody got a prison sentence for it? They will have to start building more of them! Just tell them before the date stated, you’ll just have to pay the over payment back in instalments as other PPs have stated. I think the wording of it is intended to scare you enough to make sure you do it! You’ll be fine.

No. You have til 12 September.
Tell them by 12th and no harm done

You need to tell us by 12 September
2025, the reason for not telling us sooner and what you've done
to correct this.

Can you see Emem13 then three dots going in a line?

Or else, seeing as I've started the PM, there will be a little 1 to the left of the picture of a person thing at the top of the screen.

We'll get there in the end.

Forgive me for being confused but I’ve recently started a claim for UC as asked my husband to leave due to cocaine addiction . My eldest daughter (18 years old) is NOT on my claim as left sixth form as now doing uni this year ( but living at home). She is disregarded and not mentioned on claim unlike my 3 year old.
in answer to your question if you got extra money cos she was living with you then yes at the very least you will need to pay it back and there may be a penalty I guess it depends on why you didn’t update claim/ how they found out she doesn’t live with you etc 🤷‍♀️

Oh look. I've just found out that I can PM you first. Daft banana me. Anyway, look for me!

It all depends on the circumstances whether it would change anything anyway, was you claiming for her? Was she down as in education?

Have you actually been receiving the child element of UC for her? Because usually the system would stop it automatically. Have you checked your statements?

You should make any benefits aware of any changes, though, just in case.

Well if they’re correct then you’ll need to repay it.

I doubt there would be any kind of criminal sentence though.

That's the best advice yet. Please OP, work out how to PM me. This is what Mumsnet is here for. You're in a bit of a pickle so we'll work through it.

Absaloutly not op!! Try not to worry too much they’re not monsters. Just ring them, be honest, and set up a small affordable deduction from any ongoing benefit. It may take a while but that’s a manageable way to repay. You WILL have to repay, it’s not that you just can’t, but they’ll make it as easy as they can for you.

Three red dots at the top of my name?

That means Private Messages. I will talk you down from the edge. Can you see where you can do Private Mesages?

No, you will not! Invitation to PM.

She wasn’t. The daughter was down as living with her so she must have got a bedroom entitlement for her. This means that she may have been paid the LHA housing rate that she wasn’t entitled to and housing element may have been overpaid

How were you claiming for a 21 year old ?

As it says on your journal you'll have to pay back any over payment and if they feel it necessary they will also make sure you get a fine.

Worst thing to do is bury your head in the sand. Reply stating your error. If there are any mitigating circumstances then include them but otherwise I'm afraid you will have the over payment deducted and probably face the £50 fine.

If you ignore it altogether they will have no choice but to take you to court.

I’ll be very surprised if that happens. At most hopefully it’s just a £50 civil penalty and overpayment of housing element to repay.

Do you get housing costs in your UC?

Does your daughter moving out mean that you now have one more bedroom than you are entitled to under the rules?

The child element usually stops at the end of August after a child's 19th birthday, so it's unlikely to be that that's been overpaid. But if you're now in a property bigger than you're actually entitled to, there could be a backdated deduction for "bedroom tax" (if you're in social housing) or an overpayment of housing costs if you've been getting the LHA rate for (eg) a 2-bed property and you're now only entitled to the one-bed rate if in private rented property.

How old was she when she moved out? Was she a dependent - were you getting child element because she was still in education (not uni)
Do you rent - did you receive a higher allowance due to her occupancy?

Why did you not tell them? 😵‍💫