Worried I’m committing benefit fraud

Please could I have some advice as I’m getting so stressed and not sleeping properly.

My husband and myself both have care packages. However, despite having severe health problems myself, I am my husband’s main carer as he needs 24 hour a day care and I receive carers allowance.

About 3 months ago I had a phone call from DWP to say they had discovered my husband was entitled to Severe Disability Premium (I think he called it) and that he was going to get a back payment of £16,000 and from now on would receive an additional £82 a week with his ESA. We had some very urgent roof repairs needed as well as needing new windows and doors so we used the money for that.

A couple of weeks ago my husband received another letter from DWP to say they have found that he has an underlying entitlement to carers allowance himself and that he would receive extra money for that too with his ESA, along with another back payment to follow (not yet received)

I then discovered that you cannot receive SDP if someone is claiming carers allowance for you. Is this correct? I rang ESA and the lady I spoke to said she didn’t understand carers allowance questions. She kept going off and asking her colleagues but no one could help so she said she would message someone to ring me back. No one has.

I’m now panicking that we will have to pay back the £16,000 and we no longer have it. I’m also panicking that we will receive more money that we are not entitled to and we will be in terrible trouble over it when it all gets found out.

Please can someone tell me how I can get out of this awful mess. I just feel like crying all the time at the moment.

Thank you David I will read the Scope information