By
Priya Reddy
Defence
personnel with overdue bills to the Commonwealth will soon face
legal action.
CDF GEN Peter Cosgrove and the Secretary of Defence Ric Smith
have asked Defence Legal Services to institute action where an
overdue debt has been established and there has been no effort
to repay it.
There are about 9000 debts owed by personnel, worth a total of
$4.6 million.
Commonly members owe money for overpaid allowances or for costs
met by Defence that are the responsibility of individual members
such as unfair wear and tear to married quarters or carpet cleaning.
Some people owe multiple debts and attempts by department staff
to recover overdue debts are often ignored. A Defgram (239/2003)
issued in May to all Defence personnel by the CDF and the Secretary
emphasised the present situation is unacceptable.
Director
Treasury Policy and Systems Kevin Thompson said payment of debts
was consistent with Defence values.
“We expect all personnel who have a debt due to the Commonwealth
to settle it by its due date,” he said.
Notification of a debt is by an Accounts Receivable Invoice detailing
the amount, options for repayment and details of a contact person.
Mr Thompson pointed out that debts relating to salary overpayments
that were already being recovered through payroll arrangements
were not subject to this recovery process.
You can make repayments by cash, recovery from salary, Australia
Post BillPay or Reserve Bank Easy Pay (PhonePay).
Personnel unsure if they have a debt should contact their unit
administration staff or shopfront.
Inquiries about the debt recovery policy or process can be directed
to Mr Thompson on (02) 6265 7187.
