Overpaid at work four months running!

[girlynut]

In mid-Sept, I submitted a formal request for flexible working to reduce my hours from 35 per week to 30 from 1st Oct so I could be home for the school run. As my manager was on holiday, the senior manager verbally agreed it was all OK (within 7 days.) Unfortunately he moved on to a new job and apparently didn't take any further action.

I got paid end of Oct but didn't check my payslip as I was on holiday for the first 2 weeks of November. When I got back I realised I'd been overpaid and emailed my manager. She told me she'd sort it out and that she would not be asking me to pay back the overpayment as it was clearly the senior manager's error.

At the end of Nov I got paid fulltime hours again so emailed my boss. Again she assured me she'd sort it out and I would hear from HR with a revised contract.

At the end of Dec I was overpaid again. I emailed my boss saying that I was very worried about this as I didn't want to get into difficulty paying the monies back. She told me she was liaising with her contact in HR to work out what I owed and that they'd agree an affordable repayment plan with me, deducting a set amount from my pay each month. She asked me to resend my request form to her.

Last week I sent her another email chasing and, when I got no reply, I called HR. They have no record of my flexible working request nor any manager calling them to discuss the matter. I'm furious that I've been lied to! It was too late to stop payroll and today i have again been overpaid.

I understand that contractually (and morally) I ought to pay all the monies back. But is there not a valid argument that there has been an implied acceptance of the amounts being paid? I fail to see why it is my responsibility to now have to agree a repayment plan when I have been making my manager aware since mid Nov that my salary has not been correctly adjusted. At what point do the company have to shoulder some of the fault for this situation?

I'd be keen to here what any employment lawyers think...

I'm not an employment lawyer, but I spent several months highlighting an overpayment before it was looked intoto enable me to repay it. I think you do have to repay the money, but get to control an affordable rate. I suspect the person who told you that you would not have to pay back the moeny was wrong.

It is incredibly frustrating though, you have my sympathy.

I was overpaid while on maternity leave (and didn't notice) and had to pay it back, but it was agreed I could do so over 4 months rather than in a lump.

I'm afraid it is fairly well established that if you have been overpaid in error, whatever the reason, your employer is entitled to get it back. I think you should write formally to HR/payroll with a copy of all relevant correspondence regarding your flexible working and overpayment. Say you hope this will be resolved by your next payday. Treat the money as an interest-free loan, and offer to repay at (say) £20 a month for however many months it takes.

Send a copy to your manager, without comment.

You have to repay the money unfortunately. If not its theft.

If it will be financially difficult for you then can stagger the repayments so its not a big amount out of one months salary.

Not sure what you mean by an 'implied acceptance'? It doesn't sound as though anyone disagreed with your assessment that you'd been overpaid, just that your immediate boss has been very rubbish sorting it out.

You do certainly have to pay it back, but presumably as you noticed almost immediately and at no point thought the money was yours, that shouldn't be a problem? It's not like those cases where people get overpaid for months genuinely thinking it's correct and therefore spending it.