Really panicking and spiralling about expired prescription certificate

[Anonymousemouses]

I made a HUGE mistake! I buy the prepayment prescription certificates for my DD and I. I don't buy by DD, I buy every year - this was FINE until my husband had a couple of times where he collected his early, now our renewal dates differ.

DH collected his prescription yesterday and I suddenly had a feeling tonight his must be due, I looked, and it had run out!

I did not get a reminder - because I stupidly sent it to his email address last time, and I didn't have a copy to check.

I've gone online and bought a new one and backdated it to Friday (so the day before he collected it).

It allowed me to backdate to 24th April (day his last one run out), but he was covered last month, I checked before he went.

There is NO excuse, I am not trying to deflect. I have bad MH at the moment, and have been spiralling (staying up all night worried the school had the wrong timings for DD's GCSE, wanting to email the headteacher, HOY and Maths teacher, as I was worried they gave DD foundation maths and not higher - DH had to physically stop me), I have not slept, am catastrophising everything and this just slipped my mind - every month I CHECK before we get our prescriptions, but I just wasn't with it.

I thought that by backdating it would be fine, as the system allowed it, but I have read on Reddit that you have to have paid for the prescription and then claim it back after you have backdated the prescription - but this makes no sense, as you would only pay if you knew your certificate had expired, and if you did, why wouldn't you just pay whilst in the pharmacy.

I am so stressed and worried about this, I don't know what to do, and I can't change it now I've bought a new one. I've also realised that you are supposed to be covered for when the meds are dispensed, but I have ALWAYS bought a new one (when due), on the day I have collected, I am scared to ring them as I will get in so much trouble

They allow you to backdate but in theory you were supposed to notice it had expired and pay for your prescription (and ask for a FP57 receipt at the time it was paid in order to claim it back) while waiting for the backdated one to come through.

With that said, do not worry. It was an honest mistake and if you are fined you can appeal online. It will all be okay one way or the other.

I have never paid for a prescription and never once had a fine. You have sorted it you’ll be fine

Sorry... What?

I forgot to renew my pre payment cert last year. They sent me a letter/email telling me I had signed for and obtained my prescriptions when not covered by a certificate and giving me the opportunity to explain any extenuating circumstances (this was about 2 months after getting the prescriptions). I could only say that I had forgotten! They fined me the cost of the prescriptions I had claimed and a bit more but it was only a total of about 60 quid (and it had been three seperate prescriptions I had signed for so that was 30 quid). I then got a new certificate, all quite reasonable. I now set a reminder in my calendar so I dont forget again!

What??

I collected the prescriptions (multiple items) and ticked the PPC box.

Then realised I didn't have one so bought one and backdated it to the day I had picked up the prescriptions.

Never heard anything from anyone and it was over a year ago. I moved to DD after that.

Do you lie and say you’re exempt @Georgiapeach21?

My friend had the same happen with her husband. They received a fine, but she wrote to them, explained the oversight, the backdated purchase of the new one, and they wrote off the fine.

I think based on the date it's valid from you would just need to show this if they got in touch OP it will be fine.
Worst case scenario you get a fine, but as you do now have a certificate and they can see it would be simple human error rectified by buying a new certificate (I'm sure they probably allow the backdating option for this reason!) you will be okay OP.

As a side note, are you getting any further help for your MH? I've had anxiety at that stage and it is honestly so horrible being that stuck inside your own head and not being able to rationalise anything, even when others are telling you what's ration and what's not.

I did exactly this earlier this year - just forgot to renew. I collected about 4 months of prescriptions and then got a letter saying I had collected a prescription without a prepay on such and such a date. The letter said a fine up to £100 pounds. I was so panicked because I realised a fine for each month would be a huge amount, like over £400.

i phoned the helpline and spoke to a lovely man. He said that they only do random checks and you’d have to be very unlucky to have more than one spot check. Also, because it was a first time offence, the fine was only around £40 plus prescription charge.

i put some extra aside in case I got another letter but nothing since. I appreciate I was very lucky and now I have the prepay cert on dd.

Yes, i have Bipolar and OCPD , plus am now waiting for for an autism assessment, adpfeter the psychiatrist referred me, but I have been spiralling lately and am scared to tell the GP, as the last time this happened they tried to keep me in hospital, but DD has her GCSEs and I can't risk it.

Direct debit is definitely the way forward.

Surely if anyone is getting a fine it will be your DH.

Definitely set up the direct debit. We did after getting fined ( I think about £100) for accidentally missing a renewal. Since then we don’t think about it at all.

Try not to worry about it. I would be shocked if you were fined after you’ve gone to the effort of fixing it by back dating it. Well done for remembering when you have so much going on.

Your DH is a big boy. It's time he sorts his own certificate.

Your DH would surely be the one getting the fine, if there was one, not you?

You can backdate them. No more panicking

This happened to me I'm diabetic. It ran out and I had been getting my insulin for about 2 years without realising. They just told me to get the certificate renewed and it was backdated no issues or fines.

If your diabetes is managed by medication rather than diet you don’t have to pay for your prescriptions. You would be exempt whereas the OP has to pay and their DH has a Pre Payment Certificate for their medication.

This! It's his problem so why are you worrying about it?

A few years ago I used to get tax credit exemption certificates. Assumed I would get another as circumstances hadn’t changed but min wage had gone up pushing me just over the limit. I got a fine but the fine was spread over a year so I could pay it monthly so it wasn’t too bad to deal with even on my low income. It will also only get flagged if yours is one they randomly check. I think in your situation, it over ran, you had time to back date and so nothing more will happen.

I pay my prepayment cert monthly DD now so I don’t have to think about it.

Our prescriptions are collected from an outside box. You have to stab the correct exemption code into a recalcitrant and inaccurate touchscreen, while peering through reflected sun glare, in the wrong glasses. Fuck knows what kind of exemptions I've accidentally claimed over the years.