Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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Question 531: To ask the Minister for Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 238 of 29 November 2011, regarding social welfare fraud statistics for 2010: the portion of the €25.9 million cited in her reply that represented suspected fraud and the portion of the €25.9 million saved that represented actual fraud. [18081/12]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Overpayments are generally defined as "money obtained contrary to or in excess of a valid decision". An overpayment is any social welfare assistance or benefit payment which the person who received the amount was not entitled to receive. In accordance with the legislation, where an overpayment has been assessed against a person, that person is:–

· informed of the factors which gave rise to the overpayment;

· informed of the amount of overpayment;

· informed of the proposed method of recovery; and

· before any decision is made regarding the recovery of the overpayment, s/he is afforded an opportunity to bring to the notice of the Department any view s/he may wish to offer on the assessment of the overpayment or the proposed method of recovery and any facts or circumstances which s/he may consider relevant to the recovery of the overpayment.

In 2010, total overpayments amounted to €83.4m. Each decision, resulting in an overpayment, is classified as suspected fraud or error. Overpayments arising from activity suspected as fraudulent amounted to €25.9m in 2010. Every claimant is given a period following a decision to lodge an appeal on any aspect of the decision, including the classification of the overpayment as suspected fraudulent.

Customers typically incur suspected fraudulent overpayments in situations such as:

· claiming unemployment or disability payments when they are in fact working;

· failing to disclose their full means or increases in their means;

· failing to disclose the true employment or residential status of their spouse, partner or dependants; and/or

· being themselves absent from the State or their dependants being absent.

There is no further breakdown of the €25.9m between fraud and suspected fraud.