Sample Cases
Category: Benefits
Oops…Third Time Lucky
Last year’s annual report described the case of a former master corporal who was twice reimbursed for Mortgage Default Insurance (MDI) on the home he bought when he was transferred. He was then twice informed that an error had been made and he would have to repay the money he had received. The final result of the investigation was that he was partially reimbursed for the MDI and the case was closed. Or so he thought.
Wasn’t he surprised when, several months later, he received a pension cheque with an unexplained deduction of over $100. Having no idea what the deduction was for, he called the number on the back of the cheque, which put him in touch with Public Works and Government Services Canada. He was informed by Public Works that they had been instructed to take a total of $290 from his pension in installments. They told him they did not know the reason for the clawback, but they would try to find out. In the meantime, there was little that could be done.
The former master corporal contacted the investigator who had dealt with his last case. She learned from a helpful master seaman at the Director Accounts Processing, Pay and Pensions that the pension deductions were to cover the interest on the portion of the MDI fees he still owed. The investigator asked if, given the circumstances, the interest could be written off. The investigator started to explain the complicated background of the situation, but then decided the easiest way to do it was to just send a copy of last year’s annual report over.
A half-hour later, the investigator received a call. The master seaman’s superior had been consulted and they had decided to write off the interest. The former master corporal, once again, received a reimbursement.
