Woman accidentally paid $12MILLION by the tax office and made to pay back $2,000 spent on bills

Woman is accidentally paid $12MILLION by the tax office – but is made to pay back the $2,000 she then spent on bills and helping her unwell parents

  • An Auckland woman was accidentally given $12 million by the tax office 
  • The woman misread the amount and thought it was the rebate she was owed
  • She spent $2000 on bills and helping her struggling and unwell parents
  • ANZ have demanded she pay the $2000 back, and have frozen her account

A childcare worker who was accidentally paid $12 million by the tax office has been ordered to pay back the $2,000 she spent on bills and helping her unwell parents.

Auckland woman Savana Taihia only discovered something was wrong when a regular visit to ANZ bank turned into what she described as an interrogation. 

‘They kept asking me, ‘was I expecting funds from IRD, and how much?” she told Newshub.

Ms Taihia said she was expecting a small tax rebate from Inland Revenue (the New Zealand tax office), but thought she’d only received $12,000.  

 

A woman got the shock of her life when she looked at her bank account and found an extra $12 million

When the bank informed her there was $12 million in her account rather than $12,000, she realised she’d misread the number of zeros and immediately called her cousin Doniele, who shared her shock.

‘I was like ‘faaaaar. How can they… that’s not.. that’s not simple! That’s so much money’,’ said Doniele.

The IRD refused an interview but released a statement admitting fault, claiming it was a case of human error and the money was intended for another customer. 

Since Ms Taihia was expecting a rebate and misread the figure, she used $1,000 to pay her bills, and gave another $1,000 to her parents who were struggling financially due to her father’s upcoming heart operation.

ANZ are now ordering her to pay the money back, and have frozen her account until the payment is received.

As a result, she can’t afford to take public transport to her job as a childcare worker.

‘She can’t access it. She’s not able to get to work ’cause she can’t get any funds out.’ said Doniele.

Ms Taihia said she was happy to pay back the money but wanted an apology and explanation from ANZ.

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk