CCM14280 - Closing the Enquiry: Ability to meet the settlement

Before proceeding with your settlement you must carefully consider the ability to meet the settlement, but you should have been mindful of this throughout your examination. There should be no surprises.

You should explain that a claimant who has been overpaid tax credits is expected to use available savings to fund the amount due. Where the claimant has no savings or the savings will not cover the amount due, you will need to discuss their proposals for settlement.

You can suggest the claimant sells assets such as shares or a second property or obtains a loan rather than pay forward interest on an instalment offer. However, you must not:

• insist the claimant tries to obtain a loan
• insist the claimant provides evidence of their inability to obtain a loan

We cannot insist that a claimant obtains finance and we should be prepared to accept a realistic instalment offer even though the claimant might be able to secure funds from a lender.

If the claimant indicates their unwillingness to make an offer you must explain the debt will still have to be repaid. However, you must not suggest that in the absence of an offer DMB colleagues might go for an attachment of earnings, County Court judgement or Distraint proceedings.