Overview of Direct Earnings Attachments (DEA)
A Direct Earnings Attachment (DEA) allows Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council (the council) to recover benefit overpayments directly from an employee’s wages. This process does not require a court order.
Purpose of the scheme
The DEA scheme was introduced on 8 April 2013 under the Welfare Reform Act 2012 and the Social Security (Overpayment and Recovery) Regulations 2013. It is used to recover money owed to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) or local authorities.
Employer responsibilities
If you receive a DEA notice, you must:
- Deduct the correct amount from the employee’s net earnings.
- Keep a record of each deduction.
- Send the payment to the council by the 19th of the following month.
- Continue deductions until the council tells you to stop or the employee leaves.
You may also deduct £1 from the employee’s pay each time to cover administration costs.
Exemptions
You do not have to operate a DEA if:
- Your business started between 8 April 2013 and 31 March 2014.
- You have fewer than 10 employees.
Manual processing required
At present, payroll software does not support DEA calculations. You must:
- Manually calculate the deduction amount.
- Check for other court orders that may take priority.
- Adjust or suspend other deductions if necessary.
- Manually update your payroll system and reinstate any suspended orders when the DEA ends.
For help with operating a DEA, please contact us.
