Ask DWP to review a previous request to stop (waive) Recoverable Hardship Payment repayments made between 1 January 2014 and 11 January 2021
How to ask DWP to review the decision you must repay a hardship payment.
Applies to England, Scotland and Wales
This scheme is for people who received a hardship payment from Universal Credit and have paid it back.
If you asked DWP to stop (‘waive’) repayments, and DWP refused your request, you might be able to apply for a refund.
You would only have received a hardship payment if your Universal Credit was reduced because of a sanction or fraud penalty.
Eligibility
You can ask DWP to review its decision not to stop the repayment of your hardship payment if all of the following apply:
- you asked DWP (either Universal Credit or DWP Debt Management) to waive the repayment of a hardship payment between 1 January 2014 and 11 January 2021
- DWP refused your request to waive the repayment
- you have repaid the hardship payment
You will also need to show that either:
- you could not afford to repay the hardship payment at that time
- repaying it had a significant effect on your or your family’s health or wellbeing – this means that it caused a health condition or made a health condition worse
This exercise will apply equally to England, Scotland, and Wales.
How to apply
Fill in the application form.
You must apply by 19 June 2023.
You will need to provide evidence from the time you were repaying your hardship payment.
We will need to see evidence that:
- you could not afford to repay your hardship payment, or
- repaying your hardship payment affected your or your family’s health or wellbeing
This could include:
- financial information from the time, such as bank statements, information about loans, or letters from creditors
- information from a doctor or other medical professional saying that repaying the money caused a health condition or made it worse
You will also need to provide information about your income and living costs at the time. If you do not have all of this information, you can still apply. However, it will help your application if you can give as much information as possible.
You can also write a letter that answers the questions on the form.
Send the form and other documents to:
Debt Management (C)
Mail Handling Site A
Wolverhampton
WV98 2DF
What happens next
DWP will decide whether you should receive a refund of your repayment. They may contact you for more information.
If DWP decide you should receive a refund, they will pay you the money you repaid.
DWP will contact you within 6 weeks of receiving your application to let you know it has been received.
They will send you a decision about your application within 13 weeks of receiving it.
Why this is happening
DWP has reviewed its policy about when it asks for a Universal Credit hardship payment to be repaid.
You may get a hardship payment if your Universal Credit has been reduced because of a fraud penalty or a sanction. When the reduction has ended, you usually need to pay back the hardship payment through deductions from your benefit.
You can ask for the repayment to be waived if either of the following applies:
- you could not afford to repay it
- repaying the money would have a significant effect on your health or wellbeing
If the repayment is waived, this means you do not have to pay it back.
Last updated 20 December 2022 + show all updates
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Adding Welsh translation
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Added application form.
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First published.