Overpayment

[GoingRoundTheBend]

I was overpaid a while ago and was wondering what happens if/when RM realise this.......
Being as I have paid tax on the overpayment do they then recoup the overpayment minus the tax paid or do they take the full overpayment?
Also do they take it back in one go or can you arrange to pay it back over a period of time.

[dvbuk55]

I was overpaid a while ago and was wondering what happens if/when RM realise this.......
Being as I have paid tax on the overpayment do they then recoup the overpayment minus the tax paid or do they take the full overpayment?
Also do they take it back in one go or can you arrange to pay it back over a period of time.

Well it's negotiable but it would depend on how big a sum we're talking about I suppose.

[fishtank]

OVERPAYMENTS RECOVERY PROCEDURE

1. Objective

The objective of this procedure is to provide advice and guidance for processing of overpayment of wages and expenses cases.

2. Introduction

2.1 The process and procedure set out below will be followed in all cases of overpayments, recognising the legal right and commercial obligation of the Business to recover overpayments and the need to ensure it has a consistent, efficient and legal policy on the recovery of overpayments of wages.

2.2 It is Royal Mail’s policy to pay wages on time and correctly, and every effort should be made to eliminate the overpayment of pay occurring. However, it is the duty of every employee to notify the Business immediately if they become aware of an overpayment in their pay.

2.3 Royal Mail commits to dealing with overpayments in a reasonable and sensitive manner and with due regard for individual circumstances.

3. Process and Procedure

3.1 Where an overpayment is discovered the total amount of the overpayment should be calculated and the reasons for the error established and recorded.

3.2 As soon as an overpayment has been established, People and Organisational Services will notify the employee concerned. This notification will clearly detail the amount of the overpayment, the circumstances that have led to it and the options available for recovering the monies that have been overpaid. The individual should also be informed that advice can be obtained from their Union.

3.3 Where the process in Para 3.2 (detailed above) does not resolve the issue then the employee’s Line Manager will be informed of the overpayment together with the reasons that have led to it occurring, the amounts involved, and advised that they now need to meet with and discuss this issue with the employee concerned.


3.4 The Manager will arrange an interview with the employee concerned. The employee should be given prior notice of the interview and informed that should they wish, the local Union Representative may accompany them to the interview. A record of this interview should be kept by the line manager and copied to the employee.

3.5 The purpose of the interview is to establish all additional relevant facts and any mitigating/personal issues that need to be taken into account. Normally, the outcome of this meeting will be an agreement to repay the overpayment in full, over an appropriate and agreed timeframe. However, in limited circumstances, this interview may lead to agreement that some or all of the overpayment is waived and in extreme cases that the whole overpayment is waived. The MCM/DOM will be responsible for making any final decision on waiving some or all of the overpayment, after seeking advice from their RSM (Advice and Support).

In making the decision referred to above, the following should be considered:-

• whether the Employee notified the Business of the overpayment and, if so, what actions were taken by Management
• whether the overpayment continued for a substantial period of time
• the value of the overpayment in question
• the employee’s personal circumstances.

3.6 Royal Mail’s policy is to seek recovery of overpayments of pay by agreement, wherever possible. However, Royal Mail reserves its statutory right to deduct from salaries any monies owed. The CWU notes it is Royal Mail’s policy to reclaim overpayments of wages in these situations by deducting 10% of the individual’s gross basic pay per pay period until the overpayment is fully recovered. This will be a last resort and only applied after all reasonable efforts have been made to reach an agreement with the employee concerned. Royal Mail commits to dealing with overpayments in a reasonable and sensitive manner and with due regard for individual circumstances throughout the period of the overpayment.


4. Key Principles

4.1 In all cases of overpayments an employee’s pay record/arrangements will be amended so as to rectify the overpayment at the earliest opportunity.

4.2 In cases of bulk overpayments, i.e., where there are two or more individuals, and they have been overpaid as a result of an error emanating from the same source, these may be treated as individual cases.

4.3 In the case of overpayments of less than £25 (pro rated for part time employees), People and Organisational Services will notify the employee that the amount will be automatically deducted in the next pay (whether that be weekly or monthly).

4.4 It is agreed that all underpayments of pay will be paid in full. Where there is an overpayment and an underpayment one will be offset against the other as appropriate.

4.5 Recovery of overpayments will not take place in cases where an employee has died. In instances where the business seeks to recover the monies from an employee who has died, this will be authorised by POS, in conjunction with the RSM (Advice and Support).

4.6 In instances where an employee has left the business, Royal Mail will seek to recover any overpayment. As soon as an overpayment has been established People and Organisational Services will notify the ex-employee concerned. This notification will clearly detail the amount of the overpayment, the circumstances that have led to it, and the options available for recovering the monies that have been overpaid. Debt recovery will be used in instances where reasonable efforts have been made and failed to reach an agreement on repayment of the overpayment.

4.7 Where an employee has given advance notification of leaving the business, the business will normally recover all outstanding monies owed from the employee’s final pay to repay the overpayment.

4.8 In instances where a casual employee is overpaid, People and Organisational Services will notify the employee concerned. This notification will clearly detail the amount the overpayment, the circumstances that have led to it, and the options available for recovering the monies that have been overpaid.

4.9 Overpayments identified as suspected fraud or contributory negligence will be dealt with under the terms of the appropriate national procedures.

4.10 Recovery of overpayments and the arrangements associated with the process will be applied in a timely way in order to ensure that the Business recovers the monies quickly and efficiently, and to minimise any anxiety caused to the employee

[Jefferson Starfish]

I once had about £100 worth of someone else's overtime. I kept quiet and heard nothing more of it. I assume the other person got theirs aswell at some point.

[bustedflush]

I was overpaid a while ago and was wondering what happens if/when RM realise this.......
Being as I have paid tax on the overpayment do they then recoup the overpayment minus the tax paid or do they take the full overpayment?
Also do they take it back in one go or can you arrange to pay it back over a period of time.

The RM system automatically deducts it all at once if/when spotted on ONE wage slip. All tax/NI is automatically deducted/credited too. So, if for example you were overpaid £600 net, you could easily find you have a MINUS payslip one week i.e. if you take home £350 you would have a payslip that week of -£250 and the next week £100 take-home and then back to normal. How do I know? It happened to me. No warning, no negotiation. It's the system I'm afraid.
Now if YOU point out the error before the system 'spots' it then of course there is a chance of avoiding that scenario of a surprise zero or low wage slip.

[celerycelery]

Are you sure that's the most up to date one fishtank as it has changed in the last 18 months or so?

[comeracing]

I was overpaid a while ago and was wondering what happens if/when RM realise this.......
Being as I have paid tax on the overpayment do they then recoup the overpayment minus the tax paid or do they take the full overpayment?
Also do they take it back in one go or can you arrange to pay it back over a period of time.

overpayment ? can I have a job at your office,at ours its UNDERPAYMENT,every week,good old doms altering figures so they get there bonus.

[north london driver]

the doms who have not been paying overtime to staff should becareful if it is seemed to increase
there bonus if found will be classed as fraud and the manager will be classed as finished in royal-mail.
another way of getting rid of a full-timer, if you can except a manager is full-time.

[GoingRoundTheBend]

Thanks for all the help.......

Its been 3 months since it happened so fingers crossed they don't realise

[OnAFlyer]

Thanks for all the help.......

Its been 3 months since it happened so fingers crossed they don't realise

Years ago I was regularly overpaid, and by a significant amount. Obviously I didn't realise what was happening and never heard anything about it.

[19times]

I was overpaid by £2000 around 10 years ago they realised - I didn't, had to pay it all back... fiver a week

[britwrit]

A couple of years ago, through some sort of glitch, they started overpaying me about £6 a week. Notified the bookroom at once, who presumably told Sheffield. And nothing happened.

Did the same a month later. Ditto. And finally, after six months of bugging them, they fixed it and I paid them back.

They'll get around to it when they get around to it.

[Tuffers1875]

Our whole orifice got over paid for a household delivery contract many years back. Someone had added them up wrong and we got paid hundreds. The next day people were coming in smirking and little conversations were going on. It soon became clear we had all been over paid massively. There was no chance of the whole orifice keeping schtum and it got out of the bag

One lad got paid someone's o/t from a mail centre too once, he got something like £600 that week