Can anyone help check whether my SMP payment this month is correct?

[Matleavehelp12]

Can someone please help work out if I am underpaid this month during SMP or point me in the right direction to get the correct amount. Gross figure per month £1250 (get paid monthly last day of each month) I work 3 days a week.

started maternity leave 5th May, I am entitled to the basic SMP of 90% for 6 weeks and 33 weeks at £194.32

My employer has paid me a total gross figure of £620 which is less than half of my usual gross figure. They are telling me their software has calculated this amount and they believe it to be correct but I can’t work out how 90% of my wage has become less than half.

Have you earned less than that monthly amount at any point within the last few months as SMP is calculated on earnings within a relevant period (the 8 weeks period prior to the 15th week before the due date)? Any unpaid leave or sickness?

Also what is the date on your payslip? And is there some regular pay included on the payslip? Any other deductions like pension?

My employer (I'm not in payroll but they're huge so I assume someone knows what they're doing) paid it in full weeks, so on a month where the final week crossed into the next calendar month I received that money in the next payslip, they said they don't pay part weeks for mat pay. Perhaps something similar for you?

Unless you have enhanced mat pay, SMP is 90% of your usual wages or £194 per week, whichever is LOWER. Does that help with the calcs, perhaps not a full month since you went off?

SMP is 90 percent of your current wage which means you should have been paid 1125! You’ve been paid slightly less than 50 percent so either your employer’s payment system has calculated incorrectly or you’ve been paid less during the last few months as SMP is based on that.

Have you tried the gov.uk calculator. There use to be an amazing site called maternity money but it closed. Gov.uk give you a full break down bjt nkt as flexible as the old website was.

I just tried or roughly with you salary and date but it needs more specific pay dates due dates and salary etc

for some reason the first payment was £407 but the second was 1120

i think it is due to you pay dates, qualifying weeks and how much in the first month pay slip is mat pay and how much is salary.

That’s incorrect. SMP breakdown is:

First 6 weeks: 90% of average gross weekly earnings with no upper limit.
Next 33 weeks: £194.32 per week or 90% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower.
Remaining 13 weeks: Unpaid (if taking the full 52-week mat leave).

How is it broken down on your payslip OP?

It is 90% of your average weekly earnings which is calculated from a qualifying period, based on your due date.

What is your due date?

The first 6 weeks of SMP should be 90% of your average weekly earnings — not 90% of your monthly salary, which is where it can get confusing. Average weekly earnings are calculated from your pay in the 8 weeks before your qualifying week (15 weeks before your due date), so if your pay varied at all in that period it can affect the figure.
90% of £1,250/month works out at roughly £288/week, so for a part-month starting 5th May you'd expect a pro-rata amount based on that. £620 for a part-month could be in the right ballpark depending on how many days fell in that pay period — but your employer should be able to show you the exact calculation broken down.
Ask them in writing for the SMP1 form and a breakdown of how the figure was calculated. If they can't provide that, something is wrong.
ukworkrights.co.uk has a free maternity pay checker that covers exactly this — no login needed.