Worried about getting a fine

[Oddstockings]

I’m really worried I’m going to get into trouble. I went to a local family run opticians for a regular eye test and they asked me if I was in receipt of any benefits, I told them universal credit, because I am. They told me therefore there was no charge for the eye examination and I’d get a voucher towards the glasses.
So I didn’t pay anything.

Since I got home and spoke to a friend, they told me it’s only if you’re on universal credit and earning under a certain amount, which I didn’t realise. We have an income of over £1400 a month so we wouldn’t be eligible, we get about £417 of UC.

What do I do now? I’ve left the opticians and come home. He’s already filled the form in to say I was eligible for a free test and I’ve signed it. There was no form to read, they just said sign in this box. I had no idea 😢 I don’t want to get fined.

My DP earns just slightly over the threshold meaning we can get help with prescriptions etc. but we do get universal credit.

Not sure how you know this but didn’t think to check your entitlement to free glasses.

This!

It was a genuine mistake and I'm not sure that the benefit agency is that well run that it will be noticed.

You've got email proof you tried to rectify.

Forget about it.

I don’t agree

They definitely check free prescriptions

I would also complain to the opticians as they gave you incomplete information about your elegibility and you had no prior knowlege whether you may or may not be eligible for free eye care.
They didn't just say you may be eligible, they implied that you were given that you receive a benefit.
They need to review their systems. They should allow you time to pay as it was their error, IMO.

Whats your prescription strength? I get free tests due to how bad my eyesight is.

I'd put your case in writing to the opticians and keep a copy. Write down the facts of what they said to you. Since your appointment you have discovered that...

For cheaper glasses in the future there's a few different online opticiAns which have glasses from about £20.
If you have a look on money saving expert they are on there. They quite often have offers/discounts as well so you might be able to get 2 pairs for th price of one for example

Also I'd recommend Specsavers over an independent opticiAns if you want to go to am.actual place because they have glasses from about £25 for a complete pair

For future reference, the bottom of the UC statement shows what you are entitled under the part saying 'other support you can get'.

Yeah, this is incorrect.

They do check, and it’s a very simple process for them to check which they do for each submission, it’s done automatically before they pay out and so fraudulent claims are flagged pretty quickly. It’s the same with those who claim free dental treatment due to UC. Each claim is checked so it is one of the most common & easiest to get fined for.

Thanks for all your replies. I’m just sitting here sobbing. I know it’s totally pathetic but I feel so confused and stressed out about it all. Due to my neurodiversity if anything goes wrong like this I just get so overwhelmed and I shut down. I’ve got the MOT due on Monday too, so I’m panicking about that too. I can’t afford both.
I just wish they’d been more clear at the opticians, I just trusted what they were saying and didn’t think to question it.
I know it’s partly my fault, but I didn’t realise until I got back home and spoke to my partner about it. I feel like I’ve stolen something and it’s making me feel awful 😞 I’m dreading the fine letter coming in the post now.

Does anyone know if they’ll allow me to pay the fine/money back for examination in instalments? I won’t be able to afford it up front.

The examination costs £20 so that's not an issue anyway.

As another poster said, have you actually double checked that your friend is right? All this crying won't help. Checking your eligibility will.

As for the instalment thing, you don't need to be registered with the FCA for a one-off arrangement and it may well be that your optician will allow you to pay for the glasses in instalments. Especially as they misled you in the first place.

I'm not in the UK, but I find it so bizarre that somebody would be fined for a mistake like this, rather than the claim simply being rejected

Most opticians do free tests anyway. You will need to pay for glasses, but I would try to swap for the cheapest range, if you didn't do that already. Specsavers start from £15 a pair. If you get your prescription from the optician you can also buy cheap glasses on line.

The problem is it doesn’t really matter what the opticians said or didn’t say, the guidance is clear that it is on the individual to know and understand their own entitlements and only claim what they are entitled to.

The penalty is in 2 parts, part 1 is the original cost of the treatment and part 2 is the additional penalty charge. The additional penalty charge is typically 5 times the amount owed. You can pay by direct debit monthly if needed though yes it doesn’t have to be all upfront. However if I was you I would not be going to claim the glasses until it is paid as then you cannot be seen to be benefitting from the fraud

The fines are necessary because there are lots of people for whom it wouldn’t have just been a “mistake”, and so tax payer money is being used fraudulently in those cases. The fines are a deterrent for those situations.

I'm not sure they would be fined for a simple mistake they tried to rectify. It's more people trying to get things free that they know they should pay for that would get fined.

When you say "we" wouldn't be eligible, surely your personal eligibility is based on your personal income...?

Who do you normally contact with UC queries? The job centre?

Ok op things to do

1. please stop kicking yourself - yes you could have checked that the free glasses entitlement applied to you so lesson learned there, but it was a mistake not a deliberate act.

2. the opticians should have done their due diligence as well so if they are saying there is nothing they can do it is not good enough. Complain! I will check the process but basically you complain to the shop then to head office then to the professional body for opticians to escalate if you are not happy with their response. Is it a national chain or an independent optician?

3. call the NHS there will be a way to sort this out but you will need to be proactive. Numbers at bottom of this page:
   www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/help-with-health-costs/nhs-low-income-scheme-lis/

4. get some help - use your local Citizens Advice, or call the CitA consumer helpline.

5. there is some help for people on UC with mortgages called SMI and available to help with the interest - it is a financial product so will have to be paid back.
   www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/support-for-mortgage-interest-smi/

6. if you are not working due to your health/ disability you may be able to get a premium on your UC related to work capability - there is a process to follow and it is not guaranteed but worth looking into.

www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/universal-credit/if-youre-sick-or-disabled/getting-universal-credit-if-youre-sick-or-disabled/

@FlemCandango

Thank you, all very helpful. I just find this kind of thing so difficult to deal with, partly due to my ADHD as I have a habit of putting things off or physically being unable to do something, e.g. forms and phone calls.
I leave them for so long they become a much bigger problem than they were before.
I struggle talking on the phone, especially if it’s to be assertive (which I’m not) and I find it very hard to put my point across.

I need the glasses as I’m getting headaches and eye strain regularly,

I’m going to look into calling citizens advice and I will also write down what happened and hopefully they will waiver the fine, but I’m not going to get my hopes up too much.

OP as long as you don’t go to collect & use the glasses before you have paid for them then you should be able to argue against the fine.

But now that you know you were not entitled to them free, if you go to collect them without paying for them knowingly then you are going to have a hard job arguing that the fine should be waived.

Initially it was a mistake which you could possibly explain, but if you go collect the glasses knowing you shouldn’t have them then you will have to pay the fine.

I was planning on going to collect them when they message me to say the glasses are ready and offer to pay then , possibly in instalments if they will allow it.

The fault lies with the opticians. They only asked if you were on UC.. not if you were entitled or over the threshold..they should have made things more clearly. You need to let them know and they need to contact the relevant department.

It won't be more than £100 and you can pay monthly.
But l think you can plead your case as a genuine mistake because the opticians only asked if you were on benefits and not if you were over the threshold.
You can pay as little as £10 per month if you do get fined. See attachment