Millions of people have overpaid into this system, experts explained
You could be owed hundreds of pounds due to overpayments(Image: Getty)
Brits have been urged to check if they’re owed hundred of pounds. You may not realise but you could have been overpaying on your student loan for years.
These loans are provided to help students cover their tuition fees as well as living costs. While they are therefore vital to ensure many people are even able to attend university, they can leave people with lingering debts.
However, the latest figures show that 1.1 million people overpaid last year alone. Finance expert Martin Lewis issued a warning about these overpayments.
On social media platform X, Money Saving Expert (MSE), quoted him asking: “Are you due £100s back on your student loan repayments?” MSE added: “New figures show 1.1 million overpaid last year, adding to millions more from prior years.”
The MSE website explained further: “Many have student loan repayments automatically deducted from their wages each month, and assume all is well. Yet 100,000s accidentally overpay their student loans each year, often without realising.
“Here’s how to check if you’re one of them and, if so, how you can reclaim £100s, or even £1,000s. In the last tax year 2024/25, there were more than one million student loan overpayments, according to the latest figures released by the Student Loans Company (SLC), with an average refund of £240.”
The site provided a guide to determine whether you have been affected by these overpayments. But it only applies to those who went to university in the last 27 years – meaning they had to start in 1998 or later.
MSE continued: “Over recent years, the Student Loans Company has introduced a number of initiatives to reduce overpayments and improve the repayment process for students. This includes introducing an online repayment service, issuing automatic refunds and actively contacting those who might have overpaid.
“While these changes have helped to reduce the number of students making overpayments, more than a million former students still overpaid in the 2024/25 tax year – so it’s well worth checking.”
According to the site, there are four main reasons you might have overpaid your student loan:
You repaid the loan in some months despite not earning enough in the full year to take you over the repayment thresholdYou’re on the wrong payment plan by defaultYou’ve started repaying too earlyYou had money deducted after the loan was fully repaid
To find out more and to check if you could have overpaid you can visit the MSE website here.
How to claim the money back
The steps you need to take are different depending on the reason you have been overpaying. If payments were deducted from your pay despite the fact that your total earnings for the year were below the repayment threshold, you can request a refund from SLC online.
If you’re on the wrong student loan payment plan by default, you will need to speak to your employer or call SLC. You can call them on 0300 100 0611.
You should also call SLC if you started repaying your loan too early. However, if you had money deducted after the loan was fully repaid you don’t need to do anything.
MSE explained: “If you’ve paid over your loan balance and additional payments are taken, you’re due a credit balance refund. You don’t need to do anything for this, if SLC can verify your bank account is still active and used by you, a refund will automatically be paid into your account.
“Meaning it’s important to keep your contact information, including bank details and email address up-to-date. Alternatively they will contact you to tell you how to get a refund. If you’ve overpaid and have not heard from SLC you can ask them for a refund.”
A number of MSE readers wrote in about their experience claiming back the cash. One, called Caroline, was quoted on X saying: “I was amazed to get a £949 refund from the Student Loans Company, as I assumed I had paid the correct amount over the years.
“It was a very easy process and the refund went straight into my bank account. Everything sorted within a week.”
