A government scheme aimed at correcting unlawful welfare benefit changes has made minimal progress in its first five months, with only a tiny fraction of the estimated cases reviewed. Campaigners are calling for intervention after revealing that very few of the tens of thousands of unpaid carers—who were unaware they had accumulated significant debts due to flawed official guidance—have received repayments. The Department for Work and Pensions’ reassessment exercise, launched earlier this year, has so far struggled to address the backlog of wrongful overpayments. Critics argue the slow pace risks leaving affected carers in prolonged financial hardship.
Only 1.04% of estimated 230,900 cases reviewed in first five months of £75m three-year schemeCampaigners have urged Andy Burnham to step in after it emerged just a handful of the tens of thousands of unpaid carers who unknowingly racked up huge debts when welfare officials unlawfully changed benefits guidance have been repaid.The first official update on the carers allowance reassessment exercise launched by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in April confirms that progress in cancelling wrongful overpayments has started slowly. Continue reading...
