Thank you for your request for information about the following:

Request

‘I am requesting access to internal policy and guidance documents concerning the recovery and write-off of NHS pension overpayments.

This information is sought to understand the criteria and processes for when appeals for overpayments are made and considered.

Please provide the following:

Any internal policy or guidance documents that outline the criteria under which an NHS pension overpayment may be "written off" or waived. This includes, but is not limited to, circumstances of financial hardship or where a person has acted in good faith based on incorrect information.

Examples of previous cases where a pension overpayment was successfully appealed and written off. Please anonymise any personal data in accordance with data protection regulations. This is requested to provide clarity on the types of arguments or circumstances that have previously been successful through the nhsbsa’

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) received your request on 1 September 2025.

We have handled your request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).

Our response

I can confirm that the NHSBSA holds the requested information; however, the requested documents contain information which could be used to avoid paying an overpayment and therefore could potentially be used in a way to manipulate the system and commit fraud commit fraud.

This information is exempt under section 31(1)(a) of the FOIA (law enforcement) as disclosure would prejudice the prevention or detection of crime.

Section 31 is a qualified, prejudice-based exemption and is subject to the public interest test. This means that not only does the information have to prejudice one of the purposes listed, but before the information can be withheld, the public interest in preventing that prejudice must outweigh the public interest in disclosure.

The general principle of the FOIA 2000 is that disclosure is to the world at large. Consequently, when we are considering the prejudice we focus on the consequences of disclosing the information to the wider public rather than just the requestor themselves. 

Public Interest Test:

Considerations in favour of disclosure:

Public interest in openness and transparency of public authority dealings.

Contribute to public understanding of the NHSBSA’s procedures and actions regarding dental and prescription charges and penalty charge notices.

Considerations against disclosure:

Public interest in avoiding prejudice to the prevention or detection of crime.

The legal duty to ensure that fraud is prevented against services provided by the NHSBSA.

Releasing the documents would provide the public with information which could be used to avoid paying charges and therefore commit fraud.

There would be a financial impact on the NHS if correct charges were not being paid.

Conclusion:

The NHSBSA recognises that there is a public interest in disclosure of the information to promote transparency and assurance of NHS Pensions processes. However, with regard to the requested documents the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information as more weight is afforded to the arguments outlined above to avoid prejudice to the prevention or detection of crime.

Please see the following link to view the section 31 exemption in full - https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/36/section/31

Data Queries

Please contact foirequests@nhsbsa.nhs.uk ensuring you quote the above reference if you have any specific questions regarding this response; or, if you feel you may be misunderstanding or misinterpreting the information; or, if you plan on publishing the data.

Reusing the data and copyright

If you plan on producing a press or broadcast story based upon the data please contact communicationsteam@nhsbsa.nhs.uk. This is important to ensure that the figures are not misunderstood or misrepresented.

The information supplied to you continues to be protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 and is subject to NHSBSA copyright. This information is licenced under the terms of the Open Government Licence detailed at:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Should you wish to re-use the information you must include the following statement: “NHSBSA Copyright 2025”. Failure to do so is a breach of the terms of the licence.

Information you receive which is not subject to NHSBSA Copyright continues to be protected by the copyright of the person, or organisation, from which the information originated. Please obtain their permission before reproducing any third party (non NHSBSA Copyright) information.