AQW 2725/17-22


Ms Kellie Armstrong
Alliance Party
Strangford


Tabled Date: 26/02/2020
Answered On Date: 26/06/2020
Priority Written: No


Question:
To ask the Minister for Communities (i) how many people on Universal Credit have been notified that they have received an overpayment as a result of system errors in the last 12 months; (ii) what is the average amount of overpayments made as a result of system error; (iii) what action she is taking to ensure these errors stop; and (iv) whether she will bring in a fair method of repayment or options to cancel debt to ensure people are not faced with further hardship as a result of mistakes made in the Universal Credit processes.


Answer:
The information requested under (i) and (ii) is not currently available.
As with other social security benefits, a single system, developed and managed by the Department for Work and Pensions, is used to collect and store Universal Credit data. We are working closely with the Department for Work and Pensions to improve the range of data available to us.
It is worth reflecting that Universal Credit brought together six former benefits into one new process. It involved a substantial amount of training for our people delivering the service from our 35 Jobs and Benefits offices alongside our Service Centres in Foyle, Newry and Belfast. .
Whilst the new UC system is more automated than any of the benefit systems it replaced, there is still a degree of manual intervention required. It is also worth noting that this is truly an agile system, it is still being developed and system changes are introduced on a fortnightly basis. We invest significantly to keep our people aware of these changes and we have a Service Improvement Lead in every office to support that local learning and development.
My Department is obliged to consider the recoverability of all Universal Credit overpayments, irrespective of how the overpayment arose. This is covered under Section 69ZB of the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992. However, we can and do apply discretion in respect of the issue of recoverability.
We advise all people with an overpayment to contact our Debt Management Centre in the first instance. This is their opportunity to tell us how recovery of the overpayment is impacting them, either financially or through ill-health. All cases are dealt with on their individual merits.
I am keen to make sure we deliver a service that is empathetic and protects the most vulnerable in our society. I can assure you that we will continue to review our approach here to make sure it meets that test.