A FATHER said he nearly collapsed with shock when a letter landed on his doorstep saying he owed £11,360 for overpaid Child Tax Credits.

Anthony Smith said for years he and his former partner had been filling out forms declaring the hours they worked, so were stunned when they received a "big bombshell" from HM Revenue and Customs saying they owed thousands of pounds in overpaid tax credits for children Carl, now aged 20, and 18-year-old Sarah.

"I opened it and virtually dropped on the floor," said the 44-year-old painter and decorator, of Astwood Road in Brickfields.

"I couldn't believe it. I panicked, thinking this can't be right'."

"I haven't really slept well since. I nearly had a nervous breakdown over it."

The grandad-of-one said following a meeting with a representative from HM Revenue and Customs, it emerged the couple had failed to declare their income, so were overpaid from 2001 to 2002 and 2003 to 2004. Mr Smith said they did not fail to include this information deliberately.

He said the representative claimed the reason the mistake was not picked up sooner is because the Child Tax Credit system had changed.

"I think it's disgusting that they've left it all these years," he said.

Mr Smith, who is dyslexic but said his condition did not affect his understanding of the forms, said they got the first letter in October 2006 and have been trying to resolve the situation ever since.

He said it has now been agreed that the couple, who split up in 2004, can pay back £40 per month between them.

A spokeswoman for HM Revenue and Customs said she could not comment on individual cases.