The Department for Work and Pensions has officially launched a reassessment exercise to review earnings related overpayments of Carer’s Allowance. This decision follows an independent review led by Liz Sayce OBE, which investigated why these overpayments occurred and how to better support affected carers in the future.
Background of the Review
The independent report published in November 2025 found that guidance regarding fluctuating earnings was not clear between April 2015 and September 2025. As a result the government is now reviewing approximately 200,000 cases to identify where mistakes were made. It is estimated that around 25,000 carers will receive a full or partial refund because of this exercise.
What this means for carers
If you have been charged with an overpayment during this period the Department for Work and Pensions will review your case to see if the unclear guidance affected you. It is important to note that this reassessment will not result in any carer owing more money.
The main points of the exercise include:
- No immediate action required: In most cases the Department for Work and Pensions already holds the necessary information and will contact you directly if your claim is affected.
- Refunds and debt reduction: If a review finds you are owed money you will be informed about a refund or a reduction in your outstanding debt.
- Recovery of overpayments: The Department for Work and Pensions will not pause the recovery of existing overpayments while the exercise is carried out to avoid people building up further debt.
- Penalty refunds: If an overpayment linked to averaged earnings is removed any associated penalty will also be refunded.
Scotland: This exercise also includes relevant devolved cases in Scotland administered on behalf of Scottish Ministers between September 2018 and September 2025.
Next steps
The reassessment process began on 13th April 2026. While most people do not need to do anything, a simple online form may be launched in November 2026 for older cases where the department no longer holds all the required data due to protection rules.
Carers Trust will continue to work closely with the Department for Work and Pensions and will provide updates as the exercise progresses.
Further information
Carers Trust have published a FAQs for Information and Advice staff and local carer services for Carers Assessment Reassessment Exercise.
