Derek Keating (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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57. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the amount that is represented as fraudulent claims for social protection benefits for the years 2012 to 2015 to date. [39907/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Excess payments by the Department through fraudulent claiming is measured by way of the number and amount of fraud overpayments raised. 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. An overpayment is assessed for the period that a person was not entitled to a payment. Overpayments recorded in 2015 form part of the statutory accounts of the Department and are not available until they have been audited by the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General.

Information on overpayments categorised as fraud for the years 2011-2014 is as follows:

In 2014, the total value of overpayments raised amounted to €124.4m which represents 0.6% of total Departmental expenditure. Overpayments arising from activity suspected of being fraudulent represent 0.3% of total Departmental expenditure in 2014.