I was on the phone to Centrelink, talking to a very lovely lady (it was years ago, so date and exact amount are approximate). We were working through something, updating details or something, when her computer froze. She couldn't figure out what happened. She apologised, and asked if she could put me on hold while she tried to fix it. I told her I didn't mind waiting, so on hold I went. A few minutes later, she came back on the phone. She told me something along the lines of "okay, that's fixed, but you now owe $800." Say what? I didn't know there was a way to appeal and ended up paying it off.
I realise that my story has nothing to do with the current 'robodebt' issue going on, but I can't help wonder how often this has happened to others. I think the government will happily take all the money it can get no matter what it takes. In my case, and the case of 'robodebt', that's just excessive - and arrogant.