Half a million people affected by child benefit error

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HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has apologized after around half a million people did not receive their child benefit on time.

Around 30% of child benefit payments scheduled for the month have not been made – the equivalent of around 500,000 people affected.

HMRC said it is working urgently to resolve the issue and will not affect child benefit payments tomorrow.

An HMRC spokesman said: “We are sorry that some customers’ child benefit payments have not arrived on schedule and we are working urgently to resolve the issue.

“Issues that caused payment problems today will not affect payments scheduled for tomorrow.”

Child Benefit is usually paid every four weeks on a Monday or Tuesday.

Some people may receive weekly benefit, for example if they are a single parent or receive certain other benefits such as universal credit.

HMRC also posted a statement on X, formerly Twitter, saying: “We are sorry that some customers’ child benefit payments have not arrived on schedule and we are working urgently to resolve the issue.

“There is no need for customers to call us and we will provide updates here as they become available.”

In August 2023, 6.91 million families were receiving child benefits.

Weekly Child Allowance is generally £25.60 for an older or only child and £16.95 per child for additional children.

People may be eligible for Child Benefit if they are responsible for a child under 16 and live in the UK.

The payment problem was caused by a processing error.

People who have been left out of pocket may wish to lodge a complaint with HMRC, which has a complaints section on its website at http://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/hm-revenue-customs/contact /complain-about-hmrc

Additional reporting by PA