I received a letter yesterday from a debt collection agency saying I owed a large sum in overpaid tax credits which I need to pay immediately. I completely shocked about this as the last time I heard from Tax Credits was around renewal time in June, when I returned my form. I had some overpayment from a previous year due to the nature of my work at the time, making it difficult to accurately predict my earnings (agency) and had understood that they were continuing taking back the overpayment by reducing this year's payments. The figure that the debt collection letter mentions was more than the amount I owed.
So this morning I called the Tax Credits overpayment line to find out what was going and I spoke with an operative who was abysmally unhelpful. When I told her that I couldn't understand what had happened she said that the debt had been passed to an agency because I hadn't responded to their letters in October and November. The problem is that I didn't receive any letters. I explained this and asked if she could now re-send me the letters so I could find out more and she refused and said that it was a matter for me to deal with via the postal service, not Tax Credits! I then asked her how I was supposed to work out what the overpayments were related to and she said that I was not allowed to contact Tax Credits anymore and that I could only contact the agency.
Throughout the call, this woman's manner was appalling, from the moment I mentioned I had received a letter from the collection agency. I was made to feel like I was the lowest of the low and that I was lying about not receiving the letters. Honestly, she was so rude that I made her give me the complaints address because I don't think that she should be able to speak to people like that. She had no compassion what so ever and to be honest, seemed to enjoy the power she had over the situation. I was a wreck by the time I put the phone down.
With no other option, I called the debt collection agency, but they were only able to tell me the amount I owed and had no further details, nor could give me a breakdown of the figures. This woman was actually sympathetic to my plight and said that it was ludicrous that Tax Credits wouldn't give me any information and told me to call them back and ask to speak to a manager. They have put my case on hold for 8 days. I am really scared about this. I have never had to deal with a debt collection agency before. Is this all going to ruin my credit rating?
To be honest, I was in quite an emotional state by this point. I didn't even feel like calling Tax Credits because of the woman I had first spoken to. It sounds ridiculous, but I was actually freaked out by the thought that I might call and end up with the same awful woman I had spoken to earlier. However, I forced myself to call but this time I opted for the normal helpline instead.
When I got through, I just asked for a balance statement which the woman told me and it transpired that half of the overpayment from this year? I can't understand how this could be the case as I had submitted my form with my correct salary details and it makes no sense how they could have overpaid me this year. I was only receiving a small amount of credits anyway and none of it adds up. The Tax Credits worker was confused by my file and said she couldn't work out why they didn't make a final decision on my Tax Credits for this year until December (another letter I have never received!) because I had got my renewal form in on time. She is now referring my case so that I can find out what is going on. For this much more pleasant woman, it was absolutely no problem to re-send me the letters I haven't received. In fact she did that almost immediately so at least within two weeks I will be a bit more enlightened. She was apologetic and said that this morning's woman was incorrect when she said that I couldn't contact Tax Credits and that of course I can call to get information about my balance etc.
Ultimately, I am left waiting for the re-sent letters to find out more of what is going on and then up to 3 months to find out information from the referral. I am really worried about the debt collection agency and what they will say about this time span when I call them back. Will they wait that long for me to start paying something back? I just wanted to know if anyone out there has had a similar problem with letters from Tax Credits they haven't received? I haven't moved house. I have not been aware of any other mail going astray. It doesn't make sense. I also wanted to write down somewhere that people who work for the Tax Credits overpayments line should not be allowed to treat members of the public so horridly. Thank goodness, I am actually in a good place generally but I still feel totally awful tonight. It has been an immensely stressful day. God help those poor people who are already at a low ebb and encounter a situation like this, it would push them over the edge. I wouldn't have ever predicted that I would have been sobbing down the phone to Tax Credits today, but that is what I was reduced to.