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I am in my late 50's and have paid taxes all my life.

Debt amount: 
$1400
Date debt issued: 
Monday, 9 January 2017
Period debt occurred: 
January 2017
Has your case been referred to a collection agency?: 
Yes
Payment Type: 
Newstart Allowance
Appealing Debt?: 
I don't know how to
Tell us about your debt and how has this affected you? e.g. anxiety levels, financial and accommodation stress: 

Having worked all my life, I had no option but to claim benefits after a very bitter marriage breakdown. I was suffering from severe depression and could not function on a day to day basis. The only benefit available to me was Newstart Allowance in 2011. I claimed the benefit for 12 months while I got my head straight. I had to move in order to get a decent job that paid enough to live off. I have worked at this job for almost 6 years. I have been contacted by a debt collector advising that I owe them $1400. They threatened to garnish my wages to recover the debt. I was fortunate enough to get through to centrelink. It seemed that they had recorded the start date of my employment incorrectly. After I provided the correct date, they immediately made the amendment however, there will be an amount of $130 as apparantly I did not declare the correct amount of days I had been employed (REALLY)! I am in my late 50's and have paid taxes all my life. I know I submitted all the correct information to centrelink upon my re-employment. I am debating whether to appeal or not. I have no way of proving that I did nothing wrong.

How do you feel about the way the Government has handled this process?: 

This government doesn't give a continental crap about the innocent law abiding citizens this process has caused much grief to. Shame on this government