Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 305: To ask the Minister for Social Protection the level of payments made to medical card holders or registered benefit recipients who were later found to be deceased during 2009 and 2010; if she will provide a full breakdown of the cost to the State; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31467/11]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Ensuring that the right person is paid the right amount of money at the right time is an integral part of the day-to-day work of the Department. In excess of 2 million claims each year are processed and over one million people receive a payment each week. It is important to note that the vast majority of people receiving those payments are fully entitled to them. Overpayments generally arise as a result of revised decisions on entitlement made by deciding officers. These officers decide the effective date of a revised decision having regard to the new facts or new evidence and the circumstances of the case. Payments made to customers of the Department who were later identified to be deceased during 2009 and 2010 amounted to some €7.8m , on a total of 9,850 cases.

This Department receives on-line notification of deaths from the General Registrar's Office (GRO) as soon as deaths are registered. The average value of overpaid benefits to deceased customers represents approximately one month's payment. This indicates that the Department is generally either notified of the pensioner's death by the next of kin within one month, or receives the information from the GRO. As claims are generally being terminated within one month of a recipient's death, any overpayments arising are assessed in a timely manner.

The Department is fully committed to recovering 100% of overpayments arising as a result of suspected fraud or error. Effective debt recovery is seen as an integral part of the deterrent to fraudulent claiming. Debt holders should be aware that a social welfare debt will remain on their records until fully recovered. This will result in a reduction of all future entitlements up to and including state pension. Following the death of a customer who owes a debt, the Department continues to have a claim on any estate remaining. In 2010, the Department recovered overpayments totalling over €7.8m from the estates of deceased pensioners.

The Deputy should note that I recently launched a new Fraud Initiative (2011 – 2013) which is aimed at putting in place a range of actions to combat fraud and abuse of the social welfare system and to ensure there is public confidence and trust in the system. Given this enhanced approach, the Department plans to increase the level of debt recovery by reviewing the overall approach, particularly in the context of overpayments that have arisen from suspected social welfare fraud. While the details, including in particular legal requirements, will have to be examined closely, a range of options will be explored under this initiative with a view to both minimising overpayments and increasing recoveries. The consideration of all options in these areas has, of course, to be balanced, clearly taking into account the core income support and social inclusion purpose of social protection payments.