Section 74: Liability for redress payments made in error
214.This section provides that a person is liable to pay the Scottish Ministers the value of any redress payment that has been paid to that person due to a “relevant error”, although only to the extent that it is attributable to the relevant error.
215.Subsection (2) sets out that the liability is the difference in value between the redress payments that were paid to that person, and those that would have been paid had the relevant error not occurred. Subsection (3) provides that any sum in respect of which the Scottish Ministers seek repayment may be paid in instalments if agreed with the person, or otherwise as a single payment.
216.“Relevant error” is defined in subsection (4) to mean either an error when making a redress payment, or an error which Redress Scotland determines under section 75 or 76 to have led to a determination being made incorrectly or on the basis of incorrect or misleading information (where this materially affected the determination).
217.Accordingly, any redress payment which was paid in error to the wrong account holder or where the wrong amount was entered in a bank transfer by mistake would be repayable, as that would constitute a relevant error under subsection (4)(a). Redress Scotland would not need to be involved in the recovery of such a payment. However, under subsection (4)(b), payments which are paid in accordance with a determination of Redress Scotland may only be recovered where Redress Scotland carries out a further determination process and is satisfied that an error materially affected the determination. The error may be one of, for example, having incorrectly calculated previous payments to be deducted despite having accurate information to work from, or it may be one of, for example, having been supplied (accidentally or otherwise) with evidence which misstated the details of the abuse.
