Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Question 614: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the delays in pensioners receiving prompt assessment and payment of their entitlements are ongoing and that such delays are currently running to six months from date of application; the number of pensioners who have submitted applications which have not been assessed; the numbers who have been waiting more than one month, three months and six months; the target time set by his Department for assessing such applications; when this is expected to be met; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10440/07]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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My Department is committed to providing a quality service to all of its customers. Applications are processed and decisions on entitlement are issued as quickly as possible having regard to the eligibility conditions that apply.

Most claims for State Pension Transition (SPT) and State Pension Contributory (SCP) are paid within four weeks of the person reaching pension age. However, there have been some delays in processing claims in recent months, due to a number of factors. There has been an increase in the numbers of new claims being received, an unusually high level of staff turnover in the office in Sligo and some delays of a temporary nature arose following the implementation of a new program to upgrade the Pension computer system associated with changes in work organization. This is a multi-annual programme involving business, organizational and computer technology changes, with the long-term aim of improving service to customers across all the Departments schemes, increasing efficiency and enhancing controls.

At present there are some 12,000 new claims for SPT and SPC at various stages of processing of which some 2,500 have not yet been examined. Some 3,700 claims are in the process for one-three months, 2,400 for four-six months and 3,300 for over six months. In general, further information, such as documentation, insurance contribution history etc is required from the customer or a third party before these claims can be decided.

The periods for which a claim is in process is not indicative of delays in receiving payment, as many customers apply for their pension in advance of reaching pension age. The target times set by my Department for processing SPT/C new claims are as follows: State Pension Transition, 80% within five weeks; and State Pension Contributory, 55% within six weeks. These targets, which were set some number of years ago are based on lower average claim loads than are currently being experienced. While the targets are not currently being met, action is being taken to ensure that improvements in claim processing times will be attained in the coming months.

A number of initiatives are currently under way to improve processing times for new claims. Claims where the person is close to or has passed his or her 65th/66th birthday are prioritised. Staff are redeployed to focus resources on the areas where there are delays and overtime is employed where necessary. Temporary staff are also being deployed to assist with the work. Progress is being made in dealing with the claims backlog and it is expected that processing times for new claims will continue to improve.