A man has called the Department of Work and Pensions "pathetic" after he received a letter threatening him with "further action" - over the repayment of 2p.
Damien Dove, a security guard, received a letter from the DWP last Tuesday, telling him that if he did not repay a £0.02 overpayment by the end of the month, the DWP would consider "taking further action" against him. Given the miniscule monetary amount, Damien, from Sunderland, initially thought someone was pulling his leg.
Yet, when Damien called the DWP, he discovered the letter was legitimate. It stemmed from a claim Damien made to the DWP for housing benefits when he was on low income and received a rent subsidy, which is the only time he has ever claimed benefits, reports Chronicle Live.
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Damien said: "I thought it was a joke until I contacted them. It would have cost them more to send me out the letter. They were quite serious about it over the phone and it says in the letter that further action will now be taken if I don't pay."
The 53-year-old intends to pay the debt by cheque next time he goes to the bank. He suggested the money he owes was taken out of his tax, but claims the response from the call centre was that he "owed a bill so had to pay it."
Damien continued: "It just surprised me when I opened the letter and I was asking, are these people having a laugh?! I have never known anyone get a letter demanding 2p, it's just ridiculous.
"I think it's pathetic. I haven't collected social security for at least ten years, I've worked all my life near enough apart from a few months and basically I'm getting penalised doing this for collecting a benefit for one week."
A spokesperson from the Department of Work and Pensions said: "This was a debt owing to Mr Dove's local authority; regulations require us to recover such debts when requested to do so and the automated nature of our systems the notification was generated without agent input.
"We supported Mr Dove, whose chosen payment method would’ve incurred a charge, by suggesting a free alternative."
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