ESA and compensation

A question about : ESA and compensation

In brief: OH had a motorbike accident in July 2009 (not his fault) - he claimed SSP for 6 months ish and then onto CB ESA. He has booted off CB ESA in April this year (not eligible for income based).

He is claiming compensation for the accident (had 4 operations as a result to date, constant pain, etc etc) I have vague memories that he has to pay some (or all?) of the ESA he claimed back (I don't even know if this applies for the SSP too)

The solicitors have turned around and said he can only claim loss of earnings for up to 6 months and that he should have been able to go back to work (we disagree with this but the 'medical expert' has said this so I don't think we can argue)

We had one very unofficial letter from the DWP (they spelt his name wrong, impressive) about compensation claims and ESA about 3 years ago, not heard anything since. I presume there must be some sort of communication channel between the compensation 'people' and ESA.

Does he have to pay back the ESA for the entire claim, or just for those first 6 months?

Best answers:

• Hi
  Your boyfriend should talk to his solicitor about this.
  If the medical evidence only supports 6 months loss of earnings, your bf will only be able to include 6 months loss of earnings in his claim.
  You can't recover money for the same thing twice, so the ESA paid would normally be deducted from his loss of earnings claim by the 'compensator' (I assume he's going against an insurance company).
  However it should never be deducted from the money he receives for his personal injuries (this is known as 'general damages' and out of pocket expenses/financial losses are known as 'special damages'). The worst that can happen is his loss of earnings claim will be reduced to zero and some money may be deducted from other special damages to make up the shortfall (if there is one). They can only make deductions from certain categories of losses
  There is more information here: https://www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/s...nd/1.-the-law/
  However, do get your bf to speak to the solicitor about this - never be afraid to ask them anything, they are there to support you. Also please note I'm not a solicitor or a CAB person so don't take my word for it!
• I maybe wrong here, but if the OP's OH gets compensation for loss of earnings, then any ESA for that period should be repaid.
  I don't see why us hard earning tax payers should pay for any such losses incurred.
  If the OP's OH was certified by a medical practitioner as being OK to return to work after 6 months, why didn't he return?
• Hi there,
  Your boyfriend should absolutely speak to his solicitor about this as previously stated to clarify any unanswered questions that you have.
  It is not possible to provide a definite response to your query in the abscence of not seeing any paperwork. If you require further assistance with this issue we suggest that you call in to your local bureau.
  Please follow the link below and type in your address to find out where your local bureau is.
  https://www.adviceguide.org.uk/englan...get_advice.htm
  Citizens Advice Bureau