If payroll makes a mistake and doesn't pay you........

[tunise]

because they have mislaid forms and then direct debits bounce because of you not being paid, do your employers have any legal obligation to refund the fees? Or any moral obligation? Or would i just be wasting my time even asking?
Any ideas? Thanks.

If you have provided all information they have requested, on time, and they had confirmed a pay date to you and direct debits were dated after the pay date then definitely a moral obligation.

Ask them, there's no harm. If they are honest and see it was their fault they should refund. I think it's a moral obligation.

That's kind of what i thought moral rather than legal obligation. I returned from mat leave and provided all the return date new hours stuff to HR, who then did nothing. Hence payroll had no idea i had returned and so didn't pay me.I suppose I'd need to send them photocopies of bank statements when i write my begging letter?

Firstly, contact bank (if you haven't already) and make it clear that you hold your employer responsible for you going overdrawn. Some banks will take pity and refund charges - always worth a try.
If they don't offer you a refund, then ask them for a letter itemising charges. Send that to your employer, not a bank statement (it might take a while before charges are actually applied to your account - why should you have to wait?)

In the meantime, advise payroll and HR that you are getting documentation and that you want charges refunding. Follow that up with letter, but don't beg - be assertive. It is their fault so make it clear you want this sorting asap.

Have they paid you now or do they still owe you?

I think a moral ob. at the very least. Remember many moons ago that there was a problem with our payroll and everyone got paid three days late - basically they covered any interest/fees charged for non payment of DDs in that period (mortgages mainly!)

I nearly had the same problem when I came back from meternity leave - no-one had bothered to tell pay roll, so I got about 2 days that was still left of SMP - and nothing else. I told my boss that I knew he'd said I was to take things easy as I settled back in to work, but paying me so little was taking it a bit far!

HR's excuse was that I hadn't told them I was coming back. I told them that according to their own materntiy leave policy - I didn't need to tell them as I had only taken standard maternity leave - and also hadn't come back early.

Fortunately we get advance notice of our salary (by about 2 days), so I was able to get things sorted in time.

In a previous job I wasn't paid because someone in payroll had "heard" that I had left. I was working somewhere else, as I had been eseconded there! It was my December salary too, and I was back up in Scoltand so hadn't seen my slary slip. The first I knew about it was when I went to an Autobank after Christmas . To be fair, they did pay me my additional fees.

Well i was hoping for a cheque in the post today but of course still nothing. If it hasn't arrived by tomorrow then i've been told to contact head of HR again.
I dreaded returning to work and really had to force myself to return and then they don't pay me!!!!!!!

If the cheque doesn't arrive tomorrow, ring them and insist that they put money direct into your bank account. Why should you have to keep waiting?

Try not to let them fob you off - I have worked in payroll departments and know the standard fob off lines! Even if they say they only run payments to bank at set payroll dates, it should still be possible for them to do a one-off emergency payment.

And speak to your bank - make sure the account situation isn't going to get any worse (assuming you need this payment if dd's have been bounced). Arrange an overdraft (or an increase if you already have one) to cover you for outgoings for at least another week, just in case. Always be pro-active with your bank and contact them before any likely problems (have worked in a bank as well )

Used to work in NHS payroll and in my experience we would normally refund any charges incurred in this situation - if it was definitely 'our' fault as employer (ie did HR receive the forms in adequate time to submit to payroll in time to action them for that months pay run etc), and the employee could provide copy statements etc proving that the charges were incurred as a direct result of the money due not going in on time.
I would certainly write in with copy statements and would expect to get charges refunded - however not sure there is a legal obligation.

NHS payroll - where I started my working life.

Shudder indeed, my employer is a new partnership between social services and the NHS. So i'm not totally surprised returning has been such a nightmare.

I didn't mention it, but when I wasn't paid because someeone had "heard" that I had left - it was the NHS!

But they did do an emergency transfer once they realised the "error of their ways".