I have recently been forced to stop work out of the blue and been admitted to the ICU due to respiratory failure and just received a double lung transplant. I was stuck in the hospital trying to work out why I owe this debt when I always reported my income correctly. It has caused me huge financial and emotional stress as I have been in the hospital and now unable to drive or work for 3-6 months as I recover. I have to still pay rent and pay huge medical expenses as I undergo transplant rehab while I try and rejoin the community. I have had to try and prove that I'm innocent and had my tax refund taken off me to try and prove I'm innocent when it should be the other way round. I have no leave left at work and needed this tax return to support me until I could return to work. It was also very stressful because I haven't been receiving any payments from Centrelink for 2yrs as I have been lucky enough to get back into the workforce and been contributing to society and yet i feel like I'm being treated like a criminal. There's no evidence or reasoning to how they come up with this debt. Using your gross salary from the ATO is never going to be accurate when I'm also trying to pay off a HECS debt. I am very anxious and stressed how to do this when I am physically disabled and Centrelink are telling me I just have to wait or have to bring them documents which I can't because I'm at the hospital 4 days a week and relying on my partner to support me financially and physically which is very demoralising
Terribly. They treat you like you've done something wrong and don't follow up or try and discuss anything with you. They just send you a letter and then throw you to the bottom of the pile until they're ready. One Centrelink employee told me well you owe money that's your debt we have a right to your money and you'll just have to wait