Written question asked by Bishop of Southwark (Bishops (affiliation)) on Tuesday, 21 July 2026, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 4 August 2026. It was answered by Baroness Sherlock (Labour) on Tuesday, 11 August 2026 on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.

Carer's Allowance: Overpayments

Question: To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to end overpayments of Carer's Allowance through the use of Verify Earnings and Pensions alerts.

Answer: The Department is making full use of Verify Earnings and Pensions alerts from HMRC to notify Carer’s Allowance recipients that they may be exceeding the weekly earnings limit. This should reduce both the number and size of overpayments linked to earnings, and was a measure welcomed by Liz Sayce in her independent review into such overpayments. The Government has also launched a Call for Evidence as part of its longer-term work on modernisation of Carer’s Allowance. This includes seeking views on the way in which earnings interact with the benefit.

Secondary information