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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

If your work accidentally paid you a huge bonus would you tell them?

107 replies

namechange0998776554799000 · 21/02/2023 20:33

I've been paid a big bonus in my last pay and I know my company has made mistake - I changed roles, and I don't know what they've done but it's along the lines of them paying me my full years sales commission, despite already being paid it quarterly throughout the year. It's about 2 months salary. I work for a huge company with complex bonus/sales commission rules and I'm pretty confident they would never notice or ask for the money back if I said nothing. The money would be nice, since I've already quit to be a full time carer for my disabled son and going forward things will be very tight (I'm just working out my notice). I had to take 6 months unpaid leave already this year to care for him, another reason why the money would be handy and also why I'm confident I'm not entitled to the bonus!

I'm a good honest person so I've already told HR and they are looking into it. I assume they will rectify their mistake and ask for the money back, although I suppose there's a chance the admin will be more hassle than it's worth and they'll let me keep it! It did make me wonder though, how many people would be this honest/stupid?

OP posts:
Trying81 · 21/02/2023 21:53

worriedandannoyed · 21/02/2023 21:44

No way would an accountant look this closely into each individual's pay for any month - especially if there's loads of employees! The amount will be hidden amongst the normal fluctuation of gross pay from month to month.

An audit MIGHT pick it up but only if one of the higher paid employees

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I agree with this, if it’s a commission based payroll for that cost centre and there’s potentially hundreds of thousands going through then 2/3k difference isn’t large enough to stand out (guessing that amount but if it’s a large company even up to £10k wouldn’t throw a budget out enough to drill down employee by employee)

Auditors highly unlikely to pick up either in my experience - an annual bonus scheme with strict parameters and accrued for would potentially be under more scrutiny but not commission based bonuses / payments

Always best to flag, but what seems a huge amount to you is likely not to be to them so don’t be surprised if it takes a while for anyone to get back to you

WeCome1 · 21/02/2023 22:52

Coffeellama · 21/02/2023 21:22

She says in the OP she’s already told them.

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Well would have, then! She asked what I would do. Most people have missed that she’s left, so I referenced that.

Coffeellama · 21/02/2023 22:53

WeCome1 · 21/02/2023 22:52

Well would have, then! She asked what I would do. Most people have missed that she’s left, so I referenced that.

Show quote history

She is leaving, she is still working there at the minute doing her notice period.

sunflowerdaisyrose · 21/02/2023 23:02

Around 25 years ago I had similar after I left somewhere (around £700 extra). I kept it separate for years, even went back to work for them for a bit. I didn't say anything though.

Emmamoo89 · 21/02/2023 23:07

Don't lie.

Milky4 · 21/02/2023 23:41

Unlikely they will let you keep it. This happens more frequently than people realise.

I know someone who was overpaid for years. And when the company discovered they wanted it all back......and the person was in trouble for not speaking up sooner. The person thought they'd be fine because it wasn't their error but it doesn't work like that. It's company theft if you know you're being overpaid and haven't told your work. The onus being on - you know what your salary is....so you know you were overpaid. A person making a mistake in their job in payroll does not translate to - it's OK then to take money that doesn't belong to me. It is gross misconduct.

It's not worth it. Always speak up. Always repay it immediately.

Dibbydoos · 22/02/2023 00:01

They will take it back. You can agree a payment plan if you don't have the money. Ref rax and NI that's easy to fix - we're all on continuous payroll as HMRC requires.

I was paid 2 months extra when I left a job. I reported it three times to HR. Thry didn't ask for the money back. My manager was an arse when I resigned and put me on gardening leave, so I think HR punished him by giving me a small extra payment.

Wakemeup17 · 22/02/2023 03:07

Last job, I was paid 2 weeks extra and they would have never noticed (they didn't book my holidays on then system properly), I told them and paid it back. Current job- overpaid 20% from the beginning for eight months, I didn't notice (HR did), they let me keep it.

thirstyformore · 22/02/2023 07:38

When I left my last role (senior position in a large international company) I was overpaid in my last wages. I contacted my HR business partner to say I thought my pay was incorrect. He told me to contact the HR online portal and log it. I duly did this and was told in writing my pay was correct. I asked for confirmation again in my reply, and received it.

It was wrong. Definitely a couple of grand too much but I wasn't about ti start arguing with payroll in my last few days. I kept the money in a separate account for a while, but it's probably now been spent. I could afford to repay if it ever caught up with me (which I doubt).

I saw it as a exit bonus for being an amazing employee for many many years Grin

sorrynotathome · 22/02/2023 07:47

My previous employer outsourced payroll and I had to alert them to mistakes four times over 7 years. I can’t imagine not coming clean - that’s not how I was brought up.

Morph22010 · 22/02/2023 07:52

Utilitaparking · 21/02/2023 20:40

They will find out when their accounts are done (and audited as you say the are a big company).

A year end statutory audit wouldnt pick up something like this, the audit is just to determine if the accounts show a true and fair view and this wouldn’t be material. It would only likely be picked up if they have a specific audit of their payroll/commission which is not a statutory requirement so they might not

topcat2014 · 22/02/2023 08:20

Plenty companies might not notice. Payroll is done and signed off month to month.

Assuming that month was 'commission' month then it will look odd compared to other months anyway.

That being the case, no one is going to go back to that month again.

Auditors check a random sample of transactions.

Having said that, you should have pointed this out when you got your payslip.

Drfosters · 22/02/2023 08:41

Morph22010 · 22/02/2023 07:52

A year end statutory audit wouldnt pick up something like this, the audit is just to determine if the accounts show a true and fair view and this wouldn’t be material. It would only likely be picked up if they have a specific audit of their payroll/commission which is not a statutory requirement so they might not

Show quote history

Exactly this. It would be an individual department accounts who would most likely pick it up when they do their monthly variance reporting.

I should point out (sorry if someone has already!) that there are 2 sorts of errors. One, where the payroll department is at fault. It happened to me that the amount was mistyped and I got an extra 10k because of an accidental extra 0. The other is where the payroll are given the wrong information by a department so it is technically correct at their end. If the payroll is at fault no one might ever pick up on it as the department finance might never know depending on their systems. They will run off what they budgeted for. However, If the department gave the wrong number to be paid, for instance told them the wrong bonus number, this probably more likely to be picked up during variance analysis as it will be different to budget. It really does depend on size of company and their systems. It is always best to be honest about it but once a reasonable effort has been made, it is up to the company to sort it.

MichaelFabricantWig · 22/02/2023 08:42

Of course. It’s not your money to keep

Schoolchoicesucks · 22/02/2023 09:05

It would probably be picked up and you'd have to repay. If you hadn't flagged it, your honesty would be called into question. So I think you've done the right thing in telling HR. They 99% will ask for it back, so do make sure you ring-fence it.
I have heard of cases where internal comms and procedures are soo bad that they never get round to asking for it back. So there's that tiny chance, but don't bank on it.
Sorry OP but you've not earned that money and you're not entitled to it and have done the right thing flagging it up.

Pippa12 · 22/02/2023 09:09

This happened to somebody I know and they came for the money, they paid it back monthly.

It happened to me but not as much (circa £400) I told them and they took it back in one chunk from my wage. My conscience was clear.

JustKeepSlimming · 22/02/2023 09:20

Crostimosti · 21/02/2023 21:03

I never keep what isn't mine. Its stealing. I am not a thief. Its that simple.

This. And in a similar situation I was honest; a while later another situation arose where it was my word against someone else's, and the fact that I had a history of honesty very much went in my favour.

Mincedpies · 22/02/2023 09:23

You can be as confident as you want that they wouldn’t have noticed but they 100% would have discovered it, and probably demanded it back at the most inconvenient time financially for you. You’ve not been stupid, you’ve done the only thing you could do - if work had taken that money from you accidentally you’d have been kicking down doors to get it back, so why would you have considered even for a second keeping money that wasn’t yours?

xogossipgirlxo · 22/02/2023 09:24

Yes, I'd tell them. If they decide to correct it, it's up to them, but at least you're clear.

yaboreme · 22/02/2023 09:36

While you still have it in your bank account let them know their mistake. You can then pay it back.

If you hope they don't notice, then in 6 months time when you don't have the money they come knocking you are going to struggle to pay it back.

Toddlerteaplease · 22/02/2023 10:04

Yes I would tell them. I told an agency that they'd paid me for a shift I'd worked for a different agency. They hadn't noticed! Have chased it several times but I still have the money.

winningeasy · 22/02/2023 10:29

You've already told them so obv they will want it back,

I wouldn't have said anything no, especially not as you are already leaving

Figgygal · 22/02/2023 10:32

Absolutely I would
Personal Integrity is an important trait
To not when you know its an error and not something you're entitled to is just theft

Tdcp · 22/02/2023 11:01

I know someone that was paid a years salary in one paycheck. He notified them by email but put a , instead of a . in the address so it didn't send ( so he had proof of trying to notify them?. He then put the money in a different account and waited. They never got in touch and he gained an extra 25k for nothing.

I'm not saying I approve before anyone comes at me 😂

Milky4 · 22/02/2023 11:07

thirstyformore · 22/02/2023 07:38

When I left my last role (senior position in a large international company) I was overpaid in my last wages. I contacted my HR business partner to say I thought my pay was incorrect. He told me to contact the HR online portal and log it. I duly did this and was told in writing my pay was correct. I asked for confirmation again in my reply, and received it.

It was wrong. Definitely a couple of grand too much but I wasn't about ti start arguing with payroll in my last few days. I kept the money in a separate account for a while, but it's probably now been spent. I could afford to repay if it ever caught up with me (which I doubt).

I saw it as a exit bonus for being an amazing employee for many many years Grin

There can be tax corrections. Plus you will have been paid any accrued annual leave that had not been used. Also you're paid behind, i.e your pay lags - so if you left 2 weeks into the month, you'd get your months salary + the extra two weeks.

In this case you probably were paid correctly and it was just a tying up of all the bits and bobs your company owed you in your final pay.

Depending on how much you earn, 5 days annual leave can add up to alot of money .

If you've double checked it and they confirm all correct - spend and enjoy! :-)