Sarah, Expert by Experience
Benefits overpayments and in debt to the DWP - Sarah’s experience
4 August 2025
- Sarah, a member of Money and Mental Health’s Research Community, has faced deductions from her benefits.
- Sarah told us about how this process has affected her finances and mental health.
- We spoke to Sarah to mark our new research on national government debt collection.
- Follow the link to find out more about what we found and the recommendations we’re calling on the government to make to improve debt collection.
What follows is a summary of a conversation we had with Sarah, a member of our Research Community with experience of deductions following overpaid benefits.
When did you first experience mental health problems?
As a young teenager, I developed school-related anxiety and was removed from mainstream schooling as I found it overwhelming. I now know this was related to autism, but at the time it was put down to generalised anxiety disorder.
I didn’t get a proper education or GCSEs until I completed a BTEC in Photography at college. I was also able to access a teaching assistant to support me in getting my adult literacy and numeracy.
I was diagnosed with very bad depression, which has been a rollercoaster throughout my life.
When did you first hear about deductions to your income from overpaid benefits?
For ESA, I am currently in debt to the DWP by £4,000 because I went to university, despite telling them I was going to university. I called them to explain what was going on, and I did everything I was supposed to.
Despite this, I was told I had been overpaid and was also fined £50 for not telling them, even though I had. This fee was eventually waived, but I still have to repay the debt.
I received letters out of the blue telling me I was in debt, which caused a panic attack. I was told that I had committed fraud. When I called someone to discuss it, I was told I just needed to send over some documents. But it wasn’t that simple.
And what happened after that? How much are you paying now?
I wrote a letter to dispute the debt, but that went unread for 6 months. I then received a letter telling me I hadn’t disputed it so they would start automatically taking money out of my account, so I called them and they confirmed I had disputed it and they didn’t know why that hadn’t been actioned.
I now pay around £25 a month to pay towards the debt. The overpayments are taken directly from my benefits before I see them so I am given a slightly reduced amount with each payment. The payment plan states it will take over 9 years to repay it. I feel I am being penalised for trying to better myself by getting an education.
This whole process, how has it made you feel?
I find the whole process of applying for benefits and disputing decisions exhausting – it’s like being in an abusive relationship.
We’re grateful to Sarah for sharing her experiences with us. To help inform our research and campaigning, like Sarah, you can join our Research Community here. And you can read our report on government debt collection, including our recommendations for improving the system, here.