At this stage we are not aware of any BAFF ex-service member who has received an “Overpayment of Armed Forces Pension” letter from Equiniti Paymaster.

As the Forces Pension Society (FPS) have pointed out, the letters say Equiniti has “received instructions to revise your AFPS benefits…..as payment of AFPS benefits are made from public funds, Equiniti Paymaster are required to seek recovery from you."

In other words it is not Equiniti who are driving potential recovery demands, it is the Defence Secretary for HM Government.

As a general principle, few of us would argue that payments made in error from government funds should not normally be recovered. We appreciate the need to protect those funds, and for fairness between pensioners.

There are so many differences however between (for example) benefit payments and pensions earned through service, not applied for.

It is surely arguable that if an armed forces pensioner is facing a claim for a huge debt created by no fault of theirs, he or she has at least a moral counterclaim for damage and loss caused entirely through the fault of Government or its contractors. 

The very useful Forces Pension Society information on this problem is here: Overpayment of Pension Errors.