I received a letter yesterday saying I had to call Centrelink due to an overpayment. I called them and they said I had been overpayed the Parenting Payment in the financial year ending 2012, due to an incorrect assessment of my profit and loss statement vs my Income declared on my Tax Return. I was shocked and confused. How could this be when I had declared everything during that financial year?? She said the debt was supposed to be $2500 but she was going to reduce it to $1300 because I'd provided the date I submitted my Tax Return. Initially I thought the discount was good. I organised for money to be taken out of my Family Tax Benefit fortnightly to pay the debt off. However, after I hung up and thought about it and googled "Centrelink overpayment" I was furious. I'm a single mother, on a low income, and this woman calls up and pulls this figure out of her ass. What the hell?? How was this calculated? How can they do this 6 years later? With no written proof? I called back, cancelled the payment coming out of my Family Tax Benefit and asked for the paperwork to support her "calculations" and said I would be appealing the debt. I'm feeling highly anxious and am gutted that they got things wrong 6 years ago, which may now be putting me under financial pressure.
They have handled it in a very unprofessional, dismal, unfeeling manner. If there was a discrepancy, they should have addressed it at the time. Surely Centrelink and the ATO communicate?? They should have sent the overpayment calculations in writing - not by pulling some figure out of the air over the phone. Who does that? They should realise that many people on Centrelink (now or in the past) have mental health issues, and be mindful that getting massive debt notices can push some people over the edge. It's disgraceful.