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Council Bids to Recover #800,000 in Benefits

Source: The Herald

Publication date: 2000-08-02

A MAJOR computer bungle has resulted in Labour-led West Dunbartonshire Council overpaying almost #800,000 in benefits. The software "scandal" yesterday prompted opposition councillors to call for the resignation of housing convener Jim Flynn as the local authority began trying to recover the overpaid housing and council tax benefits from about 9000 claimants.

The mistake meant thousands of letters - many reproduced several times over - were sent out from the authority's Garshake headquarters in Dumbarton, resulting in the mass overpayments.

Social work and housing director Alexis Jay has appointed a specialist team to advise claimants of the overpayments and set up a free-phone hotline to help the recovery process. The council's external auditors, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, have also been called in.

New bills will identify the period when the overpayments occurred and give claimants the opportunity to query the letter if they disagree.

SNP spokesman Craig Mc- Laughlin said: "The SNP raised the problem of the benefit system some time ago with the administration and we were assured everything was in hand.

"Now, however, we find that almost #800,000 has been overpaid, which is a scandal.

"I have no doubt the losers at the end of the day will be the tenants. How can this council seriously expect people to have faith in the administration when mistakes like this are made?"

He added: "The housing department is in a complete mess, staff shortages and chronic backlogs of work are taking their toll on staff morale and standards - and the convener must bear full responsibility for this."

However, Councillor Flynn, said about #500,000 in overpayment occurred every year, of which the major portion was recovered.

"This year, there has been a glitch and we are trying to find out what went wrong," he said. "There is an element which may not be reclaimed but I cannot comment further until we have all the facts."

In a report to today's housing committee meeting, the director points out that there are two distinct periods covered by the letters - the first from May 17 to October 1, 1999, when neither formal notification of entitlement nor overpayment was issued.

"In this period, recovery of overpaid benefit cannot be enforced," she states. "However, claimants are being asked to repay monies owed to the council."

In the second period, October 2 to the present time, claimants have been advised of their entitlement to benefit but not of their overpayments. In these circumstances, according to the director, recovery is enforceable.

"As a result, council tax bills have included the recovery of overpaid benefit, and many claimants have made arrangements to repay monies owed," she said.

Recovery processes have not been in place for housing benefit since October 2, therefore collection will start after the backlogged letters are issued.

Chief executive Tim Huntingford has decided it is necessary to have an independent review of all the issues that have arisen, which resulted in PriceWaterhouse-Coopers being called in.

It is expected their report will be submitted later this month.

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-- (Dee360Degree@aol.com), August 03, 2000