DWP deducted almost £130 million from universal credit claims in August 2020

New figures also show that more than two-thirds of deductions were taken to repay advance payments

The total value of deductions from universal credit claims amounted to almost £130 million in August 2020, according to new DWP figures.

Responding to a written question yesterday seeking recent figures for deductions from universal credit for the purposes of repaying advance payments, DWP Minister Will Quince attached a document showing total deduction figures - relating to deductions for advance repayments, third party deductions and all other deductions except for sanctions and fraud penalties - at parliamentary constituency level and for Great Britain as a whole in August 2020.

The document highlights that -

• out of the more than 4.5 million universal credit claims in Great Britain, 1.847 million (41 per cent) had a deduction;
• the total amount deducted from all claims was £129,120,000 of which £88,160,000 (68 per cent) was deducted to repay advance payments; and
• average deductions per claim was £70

NB - the DWP says that while the temporary suspension of deductions as a result of COVID-19 ended in July 2020, deductions had not yet returned to normal by the end of August 2020.

Mr Quince’s written answer and accompanying data table is available from parliament.uk