Noel Coonan (Tipperary North, Fine Gael)
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Question 111: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the funding made available to the humanitarian assistance scheme for flood claims; the number of applications for support; the average time it takes to process an application; the number of applications refused support; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8950/10]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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In recognition of the devastation suffered by people in many areas of the country as a result of the flooding from November 2009 onwards, the Government set up a humanitarian assistance scheme to provide income tested financial support to people who have suffered damages to their homes not covered by insurance. An initial sum of €10 million has been set aside by the Government for this purpose.

Community Welfare Service staff throughout the country have been providing support to families since this flooding occurred. Up to the 12th February 2010 they had already made over 2,406 payments to 1,189 individuals to the value of €925,000. The average payment per individual is €778; with the largest payment to an individual in excess of €20,000.

While the timescale for determining applications for humanitarian assistance claims is dependant, among other things, on the availability of the required information, there is no backlog of undecided claims. According to the information available from the HSE, as of 12th February 2010, there were approximately 50 applications currently being assessed and only four claims refused.

Payments have been provided for emergency financial and other assistance to cover items such as clothing, food, bedding, heating, hire of dehumidifiers and emergency accommodation needs. The Community Welfare Service will continue to make these payments as long as there is a requirement to do so. Such emergency payments under the Humanitarian Assistance Scheme are made without delay and without regard to the household income as the primary objective of these payments is to address the person's immediate needs.

As the flood waters have receded in some areas, individuals are now in a better position to assess the extent of the damage to their homes. In these cases, payments have been made in respect of essential household items such as carpets, flooring, furniture and white goods. Assistance is also available for structural repairs to homes not covered by household insurance.

Very few large scale claims have been made at this stage as homeowners have not yet established the cost of repair. In many cases, they are awaiting builders' estimates. It is expected that large scale claims will be received over the coming weeks. These claims will take somewhat longer to process as they will require verification of the loss and the possible use of a loss assessor.

The level of payment available under the aid scheme to any qualified individual depends on the severity of the damage to that person's home and the extent of the loss experienced as well as household income and general family circumstances. The scheme provides hardship alleviation as opposed to full compensation. As on previous occasions, commercial or business losses are not covered by the scheme nor are losses which are covered by household insurance.

Applications under the scheme are being income tested to ensure that available assistance is prioritised for those who are most vulnerable. The basic objective of the income test is to determine the household's capacity to meet the costs of restoring their home to a habitable condition. All household income is considered when determining entitlement to payment.

Detailed guidelines have been provided to the HSE in relation to the income test. These guidelines also contain a list of the type of goods/appliances that are generally covered by the scheme and what replacement value should typically be attributable to each item. This list is not exhaustive and is intended as a guide only. The Community Welfare Service has full discretion to make payments at a higher level than a strict application of the income test would warrant in any individual case where it considers it appropriate to do so. This income test and guidelines simplify the assessment process and allow for the speedy processing of applications.

People seeking assistance should contact their local Community Welfare Office. Further information and applications forms in relation to the humanitarian assistance scheme are available from the Community Welfare Service in the affected areas and from the Department's website (www.welfare.ie) and the HSE's website (www.hse.ie).