If you receive Carer’s Allowance – or if you did in the past – you may be worried about recent news saying some people will have to pay money back to the Government.
Many Fair for You customers are carers, or have a partner or someone else in their household with a disability. We know that being a carer can cause financial worries, especially if you have a low income.
In this blog, we explain what has happened with Carer's Allowance overpayments, and what you need to know.
What is Carer’s Allowance?
Carer’s Allowance is a benefit for some carers. It’s currently £86.45 per week.
Some of the key things to know are that if you want to claim, you:
- have to provide care for to someone for at least 35 hours a week;
- don’t have to be related to, or live with, that person;
- must earn less than £204 per week after tax, National Insurance and expenses. The weekly earnings limit has changed over time.
Full information about who can get it is on the Gov.UK website.
What are Carer’s Allowance overpayments?
An overpayment means that someone received a payment that they were not entitled to.
If someone receives a Carer's Allowance and their earnings go over the weekly earnings limit, they can be asked to repay the benefit they received during that time.
However, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has admitted that its guidance on people with fluctuating earnings – meaning their income changed week by week – was unclear between April 2015 and September 2025.
During that period, lots of carers got overpayments, without realising that they had done anything wrong – and then were asked to pay back large amounts of money.
An independent review last year by Liz Sayce - the ex-CEO of charity Disability Rights UK, and an expert on topics including mental health and social isolation - asked carers about their experiences of the system. Many experienced significant frustration, with one saying: “It’s like playing a game where only the other side knows the rules.”
What is the reassessment exercise?
The government has announced that the DWP will now review more than 200,000 Carer’s Allowance cases affected by that unclear guidance.
The charity Carers UK says that “in most cases” there will be no change to the Government’s decision.
However, the Government estimates that 25,000 carers could see their debts reduced or cancelled entirely, or might receive refunds where money has already been repaid.
Does this cover all Carer’s Allowance overpayments?
No.
This reassessment is only for cases where overpayments happened because of the unclear earnings guidance, between April 2015 and September 2025.
Charities supporting Carers, such as Carers UK and the Carers Trust, have said that this reassessment on its own is not enough and that the system needs to be fixed - and that the Government should make all the changes recommended by Liz Sayce’s review.
Do I need to do anything?
The Government’s announcement says that carers do not need to contact the DWP – it says they will get in touch if they need anything further.
However, if you have general enquiries about Carer’s Allowance, you can contact the Carer’s Allowance Unit on the phone or by post.
If you want more information, you might also want to look at the overpayment support hub on the website of Carers UK.
What if I have other financial difficulties as a carer?
There are lots of places where you can get free debt advice, including from national charities like Citizens Advice, Turn2us and StepChange Debt Charity.
Look at our dealing with debt and money struggles page for more information.
You can also use the benefits calculator on our website to check what benefits you’re eligible for – some people discover new income they didn’t know they could get.
I’m a carer. Can I apply for a Fair for You loan?
Fair for You loans help to spread the cost of essential items - credit is either paid directly to a retailer for the purchase of a specific item, or goes onto a prepaid Mastercard, which can be spent at our partner retailers. It cannot be used to repay debts such as a Carer’s Allowance overpayment.
However, lots of Fair for You customers are carers. When you apply, we’re particularly interested in how you’re repaying things right now at the time of your application, alongside your credit history.
Fair for You is an ethical lender. We’re also not-for-profit, meaning that every penny we make is put back into our mission – to help more people access fair, affordable credit.
Our loans help people spread the cost of essential items – things like fridges, dishwashers, washing machines, beds and more. We also have a Shopping Card loan, which lets you spread the cost of purchases at stores including Iceland, Currys and Argos, from just £50.
Fair for You loans are subject to eligibility and affordability checks. Missed payments may affect your credit file. Only borrow what you can afford to repay.