MORE THAN 36,000 parents who have sought a back-to-school allowance have yet to have their claims processed by the Department of Social Protection, a Public Accounts Committee has heard.
Secretary general of the department Niamh O’Donoghue said 80,000 extra claims for the clothing and footwear allowance were made this summer and, although the school term had already started, some 36,000 remained unprocessed.
Ms O’Donoghue also told the committee that appeals against “adverse decisions” on the reduction or withdrawals of benefits were taking up to just under a year to process. In addition, to the end of last month the department had overspent by €143 million.
Earlier this year the department made automated payments, worth €200-€305 per child depending on their age, to some 127,000 parents who they had previously determined were entitled to the allowance.
However, Ms O’Donoghue said, the department received some 80,000 additional applications over the summer which “significantly surpassed” its expectations.
During the summer months it was receiving 3,000 claims a day, by the beginning of August this had fallen to 1,500 a day, but it was still receiving up to 1,000 a day as the September 30th deadline for applications approaches.
The department had to date processed 43,500 claims, 32,000 were found to be valid and were paid, 5,300 were refused and 5,200 were returned because the form was incomplete.
Staff were working extremely hard, she said, and were processing approximately 1,250 claims a day, but she conceded the backlog remained very large.
“We’ve ratcheted up the resources on this one, because we are conscious that school has recommenced, but a number of applications have only been made since school recommenced.”
She added that the department would be “immediately reviewing the scheme” after this year’s deadline passed.
Appeals against adverse decision of the department in relation to benefits had “in all areas mushroomed. . . appeal waiting times are very significant at the moment,” Ms O’Donoghue said.
Appeals had been around the 15,000 to 16,000 mark but were now “several multiples” of this. In 2010 there were 32,432 new appeals, an increase of 25 per cent on 2009. The average waiting time in 2010 for summary appeals, those which just involve a review of the claimant’s files, was 27.5 weeks. Claims where an oral hearing was required were taking 45.5 weeks on average to complete.
“We are taking every measure possible to reduce the time people have to wait.”
Ms O’Donoghue also said she was aware of the great public concern about social welfare fraud.
“This concern is reflected in the very significant increase in the levels of suspected fraud reported to the department in the past three years.”
Levels of fraud in relation to pensions were low, but there were higher risks in relation to jobseeker’s assistance, one parent family payments and disability and illness related payments.
The department was investigating fraud and error in relation to the one parent payments and had last year undertaken an investigation in relation to the disability allowance scheme.
Both investigations would shortly be finalised.
An investigation in relation to jobseeker’s benefit will begin this autumn, she said.
