Help - paid too much maternity pay.

[Doodler79]

I think I have been seriously overpaid maternity pay! I have two part time jobs and put my MatB1 form into both as requested. I then went off on maternity leave. After a couple of months I realised I was getting two lots of maternity pay I immediately queried this and wad told by both I was entitled to it. I have a sinking feeling I'm not!! Any help or advice much appreciated - I'm so scared. Thanks.

Interesting... Are they both paying you the standard weekly SMP?

I'm pretty sure you are entitled to both, I remember reading about it in the purple book. I'm no expert though, sure someone in the know will be along soon

hope this helps

thanks for that info leboob-it's helped to ease the sick feeling in my stomach!
i could just do with a fellow mumsnetter who has been in the same position to come along and talk to me! i'm so scared i've been getting too much and there will be a letter demanding it all back!

You can always give hmrc a call & see if they'll put your mind at rest?

Keep bumping someone will know

Do you earn enough to pay national insurance in separately in both jobs? Have you been employed for at least a year in both jobs? If so, it is highly likely that you are entitled to both lots of maternity pay.

Use this calculator to put the earnings from each job in separately. It will tell you what you should be receiving.

suedunome-yes to ni and length of service. thanks for calculator link, will give it a go. i am thinking of giving hmrc a bell, but am a coward!! i sort of assumed that my employers/hmrc would sort out/calculate-was this wrong of me?! any mumsnetters out there who have been in a similar position?

bump

shouldn't it be pro-rata though, rather than just two lots of smp? i'm really confused. i'm going to give hmrc a ring on monday, if i feel brave enough! i would appreciate anyone else's thoughts.
thanks

shouldn't it be pro-rata though, rather than just two lots of smp? i'm really confused. i'm going to give hmrc a ring on monday, if i feel brave enough! i would appreciate anyone else's thoughts.
thanks

It should be 90% of your normal pay for 6 weeks and then a flat rate of £135ish for the next 33 weeks.

If you qualify in both jobs, you will be paid this for both jobs.

The only reason you wouldn't would be if both jobs are with the same employer and are paid on the same pay slip, in which case you would only get one lot of SMP.

If you work for two different employers and qualify for SMP
in both, you are entitled to all this money.

Be careful though as, if you return to one job before SMP runs out, you will lose your remaining entitlement to SMP in the other job.

I work in payroll.

Employee has more than one employer
If your employee has more than one employer they can get SMP from each employer if they satisfy all the qualifying conditions. They can choose to take different times off from each employer. This is from HMRC's E13 booklet. I work for HMRC.
I don't think you would lose your entitlement for SMP in one job if you return to work in the other. Your employer would only stop paying if you started working for a brand new employer after your Qulifying Week (15 weeks before your due date)

thanks so much for that suedunome. i work for two different employers and didn't return until 11mths (after smp for both had run out). you have helped so much to put my mind at rest. i really appreciate the time you (and others) took to post. thanks again.