wages paid from an old job

[daavedave]

my wife has been paid a months wages from a job that she has just left,

she was told that she had handed her notice in after a certain cut off date, and that she would be paid a full months wage and that they would write and tell her that she had to pay some of the money back as it wasnt owed to her but had already gone "through the system"

they havent written to her
what do we do? as at the minute we could do with spending some of the money, and then if and when they write, we can pay them back then?

obviously there are moral issues here... but:
is there any legal reason why we should not use the money?


i dont think they intend to get the money back through the bank, as they wouldnt have said they would write to us, or would not pay a full months wage into the account in the first place...

[bednobs]

lol of course there is a legal issue with keeping money you know is not yours - it's called stealing!

do you know how much they will ask for back and how much you will keep. Common sense should tell you to keep it back in case the letter arrives on your mat tomorrow, surely?

[buildersmate]

It's going to have to go 6 years before you will know for sure that she can't be pursued for this 'debt'.

[WoWo]

Given you have been forewarned about the issue I would say that changes the situation.

At the end of the day it's not you money, however had you not known it had to be paid back you could have a reasonable argument to say that you didn't know and arrange a fair repayment period, say �50 a month.

For me it really depends on how quickly you intend to pay it back if you did spent it, could you pay it back next month, if so I'd personally use it now and then when chased for the money say you will pay on X date (which is all you would be legally required to do).

With regards to then intending to recover from the bank, they simply can't do that (not a legal issue, to withdraw funds they would need you signature on a DD form or standing order).