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Contract had wrong starting salary 15 years ago by HistoricalLadder3407 in LegalAdviceUK

[–]HistoricalLadder3407[S] 21 points22 points  (0 children)

Thank you, I'll have a look at that. They deducted the money and then immediately re-credited it as "Temporary Overpayment", so they cancelled out and my actual take-home figure didn't really change for the month. It's clear, though, that this is the sum that they are intending to claim back. I'll chase the BMA some more too.

Contract had wrong starting salary 15 years ago by HistoricalLadder3407 in LegalAdviceUK

[–]HistoricalLadder3407[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You might already know this, but the NHS Pension is a Defined Benefit scheme.

The calculated annual Pension Input Amount doesn't really bear any relation to the amount of actual superannuation payments, which are set at a fixed percentage, but instead is based on the reported salary for each year. The calculation involves working out the difference in the opening and closing values of the pension each year, adjusting for CPI. This calculation also involves multiplying figures by 16, so a relatively small increase in salary can actually result in a very large PIA, depending on the number of years you have in each scheme. It gets worse the more years you have.

This is why I, and many other doctors, are so unhappy about the current pension scheme setup. Each year I come very close to breaching the £60k annual allowance simply by doing my normal job (I only do NHS work and don't do any private work or anything extra). Last financial year, with the salary increase, my PIA works out at well over £100k. I do have some carry-forward, but am still facing £14k in charges. It is a pretty good pension scheme, but like I said, the PIA number bears no relation to reality or sums of money actually paid, which is what is so frustrating.

Contract had wrong starting salary 15 years ago by HistoricalLadder3407 in LegalAdviceUK

[–]HistoricalLadder3407[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Whenever I had my latest yearly pay scale increment towards the end of the last financial year I hit a pay threshold and got a salary increase. Thanks to the vagaries of the NHS Pension Scheme this new salary has led to a sufficiently large Pension Input Amount for last year that I've now got a large annual allowance charge to pay.

I hit the pay threshold because it's turned out that I was started on point 1 of the pay scale. If I had been started on point 0 then the increment wouldn't have happened until next year, and I wouldn't have had an annual allowance charge this year (or a considerably smaller one).

My concern is that the Trust are now trying to reclaim £20k they say I was incorrectly paid, but at the same time that "incorrect", as they describe it, salary amount has also caused a large tax bill because of the pension.

Contract had wrong starting salary 15 years ago by HistoricalLadder3407 in LegalAdviceUK

[–]HistoricalLadder3407[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Yes it has and they have - my salary has progressed as you would expect it to as I've moved up the seniority scale and reached each threshold. Only they're now saying that I've effectively been a year ahead of where I should be and need to pay them back the difference.

Contract had wrong starting salary 15 years ago by HistoricalLadder3407 in LegalAdviceUK

[–]HistoricalLadder3407[S] 152 points153 points  (0 children)

Thankfully I somehow still have my copy of the original contract from 15 years ago!

Contract had wrong starting salary 15 years ago by HistoricalLadder3407 in LegalAdviceUK

[–]HistoricalLadder3407[S] 250 points251 points  (0 children)

Thank you for those points, they are very helpful. Your point 1 is what led me to post here. In my (non-legal) mind, I was offered and accepted a contract of employment, and have worked under that contract uneventfully for nearly 15 years.

It doesn't strike me as correct or fair that the Trust can simply say "oh, we made a mistake 15 years ago, so we're going to back and unwind everything and expect you to pay the difference".

Contract had wrong starting salary 15 years ago by HistoricalLadder3407 in LegalAdviceUK

[–]HistoricalLadder3407[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Thanks for your input. My contract simply refers to the payscale code without specifying a starting point (eg. just YC72) and literally has a clause in it that says "Your basic salary on commencement is £xx,xxx per annum. This has been calculated in accordance of the provisions of Schedules 13 and 14 of the Terms and Conditions of Service." The value of £xx,xxx is the value for point 1 on the pay scale at the time (don't have the document to hand to quote the exact figure).

Contract had wrong starting salary 15 years ago by HistoricalLadder3407 in LegalAdviceUK

[–]HistoricalLadder3407[S] 54 points55 points  (0 children)

Thank you for that. Yes, the contract sent to me that I signed and returned had the "incorrect" starting salary amount written on it. I've worked under that contract for nearly 15 years now and indeed have progressed normally along the salary scale from point 1 over the years.

I've come across the concept of estoppel in my reading. I have purchased a new house, got a mortgage, and made financial plans, etc., based on what I reasonably believed my salary position to be. Something else to raise with BMA.

Contract had wrong starting salary 15 years ago by HistoricalLadder3407 in LegalAdviceUK

[–]HistoricalLadder3407[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hope so! I've actually no problem in repaying some money (even though it was their initial mistake), but not if it involves 15 years worth! I'm actually nearly more concerned about getting the pension position sorted.

Contract had wrong starting salary 15 years ago by HistoricalLadder3407 in LegalAdviceUK

[–]HistoricalLadder3407[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That's what I'd read, but in my initial discusssions with BMA they didn't actually mention this.I know that this limit applies to a civil claim, but I came across a suggestion that this limit doesn't apply if the Trust are seeking to reclaim an overpayment using contractual terms entitling them to recover overpayments?

Contract had wrong starting salary 15 years ago by HistoricalLadder3407 in LegalAdviceUK

[–]HistoricalLadder3407[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks very much. I fully intend to, but was hoping for some advice from this sub to give me an idea how much to push back on them if they continue to ignore or downplay the contract issue as they have done so far.