Hardman and Secretary, Department of Social Services (Social services second review)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered a dispute between Ms. Hardman and the Secretary of the Department of Social Services concerning a debt incurred for parenting payments. The core of the disagreement revolved around whether the debt was validly raised and, if so, whether there were grounds for its waiver or write-off.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant had incurred a debt for parenting payments, and if so, whether any provisions of the Social Security Act 1991 (Cth) permitted the waiver or write-off of that debt. Specifically, the Tribunal had to determine if the debt was solely attributable to administrative error, if the applicant lacked the capacity to repay it due to severe financial hardship, or if there were special circumstances making waiver desirable.

The Tribunal found that the applicant had indeed incurred a debt of $18,649.95 due to her partner's self-employment income not being correctly factored into her parenting payment assessment between June 2014 and June 2017. The applicant admitted to not reading correspondence from Centrelink carefully and accepted that her failure to report her partner's income changes contributed to the debt. The Tribunal concluded that the debt was not solely attributable to administrative error, as the applicant had been notified of her reporting obligations and had failed to comply. Furthermore, the applicant did not demonstrate severe financial hardship, and her circumstances were not considered sufficiently special to warrant a waiver under the relevant provisions. The Tribunal affirmed the decision under review, finding the debt to be legally recoverable and that the applicant had the capacity to repay it, with recovery payments already commencing through deductions from her Commonwealth benefits.