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<p>In the last month for which figures are available DWP paid out almost £3.5bn in
Universal Credit and it should be noted that fraud and error in the benefits system
remains low, with 95% of benefits, worth more than £200bn. paid correctly in 2020/21.
Official Error overpayments remained at 0.4% of benefit expenditure last year, with
UC Official Error Overpayments falling from 1.3% to 0.9%.</p><p> </p><p>Deductions
from UC are now capped at 25% (as of April 2021) having previously been 30%. Where
requested deductions exceed the 25% maximum, or there is insufficient UC in payment
for all deductions to be made, a priority order is applied, which determines the order
in which items should be deducted. ‘Last resort’ deductions, such as rent or fuel
costs, are at the top of the priority order, ensuring that claimant welfare is prioritised,
followed by social obligation deductions, such as fines and child maintenance, and
finally benefit debt, such as Social Fund loans and benefit overpayments.</p><p> </p><p>Anyone
with overpayment deductions who does experience financial hardship is encouraged to
contact the Department’s Debt Management unit. Where a person cannot afford the proposed
rate of these deductions, a lower amount can be negotiated.</p><p> </p><p>Deductions
in respect of UC Official Error debt for the last 6 months are shown below:</p><p>
</p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Month</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Value of
in month recovery where debt category is official error</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Average
recovery per Customer in Month</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Jan-21</strong></p></td><td><p>£12,470,549</p></td><td><p>£67.47</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Feb-21</strong></p></td><td><p>£14,464,840</p></td><td><p>£67.15</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Mar-21</strong></p></td><td><p>£16,444,768</p></td><td><p>£70.11</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Apr-21</strong></p></td><td><p>£16,524,866</p></td><td><p>£69.95</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>May-21</strong></p></td><td><p>£13,563,717</p></td><td><p>£65.02</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Jun-21</strong></p></td><td><p>£14,584,640</p></td><td><p>£63.44</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>
</p><p>* The data shown in the above table is taken from operational data systems,
and is not intended for publication. Therefore, the data itself is not quality assured
to the standard of published Official Statistics and National Statistics.</p><p> </p>
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