Barry nurse’s warning after overpaying thousands in income tax shows why you must check your tax code on payslips
A district nurse in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, discovered by chance that she was paying far more income tax than necessary and is now urging everyone to review their tax code on payslips.
Gemma Belby, a mother of four, only learned that her tax was nearly double what her colleagues were paying after a casual chat about pay. She says HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) took three months to correct the error and refund almost £3,000 after she first raised the issue in October, a process she describes as stressful and detrimental to her health.
HMRC has not yet commented on the case.
It is legally down to the individual to ensure they are paying the correct amount of tax.
Belby’s revelation came when she compared her take-home pay with that of her coworkers who had received back pay following a new nurses’ pay deal. She noticed her own tax deduction was higher and wondered why she wasn’t receiving the same adjustment.
She had hoped the refund would arrive before Christmas, but the experience was slow and confusing, with conflicting information and two very different estimates of what she was owed. “I was tearful most of the time,” she recalls. “That money was mine to spend on my children at Christmas, and not being able to do so was painful.”
Belby also expressed frustration that HMRC would not pay interest on the overpayment, despite her having raised the issue in October.
On January 19, HMRC told her she was owed £8,194.96 for the 2024-25 tax year. However, shortly after, an official contacted her to say that figure was incorrect and that the refund needed recalculation using her P60, a document detailing the tax paid during the financial year.
“When I called in October, I gave them my P60, and they could have calculated and issued the refund then,” she said.
Following recalculation, HMRC confirmed the correct refund was £2,863.04, which she received at the end of January.
Her message is clear: check your tax code. Belby wants others to avoid overpaying thousands of pounds and stresses the importance of accuracy in tax reporting.
“Make sure it’s right, because if it happened to me, I’m confident it’s happening to others.”
What to know about checking your tax code
- A tax code determines how much income tax your employer deducts from your salary or pension.
- The most common code for single-employer earners is 1257L, which allows £12,570 of annual income before tax applies.
- If you receive company benefits (e.g., health insurance), this amount may be reduced.
- In Wales or Scotland, tax codes typically begin with C or S.
- You can use the HMRC tax code checker to understand your code and its implications.
- You can monitor and manage your tax details by creating a personal tax account with HMRC.
This is not just a personal hiccup; financial journalist Martin Lewis recently highlighted the issue on his podcast, warning that millions have incorrect codes every year. He emphasizes that individuals bear the responsibility to ensure accuracy, noting that a wrong code can mean overpaying or incurring a large, unmanageable tax bill.
Tax-experts point to various reasons codes can go wrong, including arrears from prior years or additional income. Sometimes, however, administrative errors occur and codes are issued incorrectly.
If your tax code is incorrect, speak with your payroll department if they’re your only employer, or contact HMRC to correct the code.
What’s your take on tax codes? Do you regularly review your payslips, and have you ever discovered a miscalculation that changed your refund or liability? Share your experiences in the comments.
