Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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1088. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if a period of grace can be applied to the disability allowance for a parent in receipt of the allowance when the child passes away; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29242/22]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Disability Allowance is a means-tested payment for people with a specified disability who are aged between 16 and 66 and resident in the state. 

If a Disability Allowance customer dies and there is an increase for an adult dependant in payment the payment continues for six weeks.  If a Disability Allowance customer dies and there is no increase for an adult dependant, entitlement to payment ceases upon the death of the customer.  However, if another person is in receipt of Carer’s Allowance in respect of that person, the Carer’s Allowance payment will continue for a period of 12 weeks.

Where Disability Allowance is paid to a collection agent, my Department may not be aware of the relationship between the agent and the Disability Allowance customer.  In many cases agents may be a spouse, adult child, or a non-relative such as a carer, neighbour, or a manager of a residential care setting.

My Department recognises the need for a transition period during which people can grieve and plan for a life following the death of a family member.

Payment of Carer's Allowance continues to be made for a further 12 weeks after the death of the person being cared for.  In circumstances where a person is in receipt of another social welfare payment together with a half-rate Carer’s Allowance then the half-rate Carer’s Allowance will also continue for 12 weeks.

The Carer’s Support Grant, which is paid on the first Thursday in June will automatically be paid where Carer’s Allowance is paid on that date.  This will also include instances where the person being cared for has passed away before that date.

There are financial supports available from the Department of Social Protection, under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme.  This includes financial assistance with funeral expenses. These payments are administered by the Community Welfare Service of the Department and are payable at the discretion of the Community Welfare officer taking into account the requirements of the legislation and all the relevant circumstances of the case.  

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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1089. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if her Department will consider establishing a policy review for parents and carers in receipt of social welfare supports that will cease once their child passes away; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29243/22]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The death of a child is a tragedy and the difficulties that parents and families experience as a result cannot be over-stated.

Within the social welfare system, there are a number of supports for people who suffer a bereavement.  In particular, there is an arrangement known as the six-weeks payment after death which allows for certain payments to continue to be made after a person dies.

If a person is in receipt of a primary social welfare payment which includes an increase for a qualified child and, tragically, that child dies, the qualified child payment will continue for six weeks after the child's death. In cases where an individual has been in receipt of One-Parent Family Payment in respect of one qualified child, both the personal rate of payment and the increase for a qualified child, will continue for six weeks after the death of that child.

Working Family Payment and the Back to Work Family Dividend also remain in payment for up to six weeks after the death of a qualifying child.  Eligibility may continue beyond those six weeks if there are other children associated with the claim.

In the case of Carer’s Allowance, payment continues to be made for twelve weeks after the death of the person who was being cared for, including where this was a child.  Carer’s Benefit continues to be paid for six weeks and Domiciliary Care Allowance continues to be paid for three months after the death of the child being cared for.

Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, the Department may make an exceptional needs payment (ENP) to help meet essential, once-off expenditure which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet from their weekly income.  An application can be made under the ENP scheme for assistance with funeral and burial expenses where there is an inability to pay these costs, in part or in full, by the family of the deceased person without causing hardship.  In 2021, approximately 2,400 exceptional needs payments totalling €5.1 million were made in relation to funeral and burial costs.

In Budget 2020, €60,000 was allocated to the Irish Hospice Foundation, to carry out a research project into funeral poverty in Ireland, together with the wider economic impact of bereavement. I understand that the report is near completion.

Any increases in the social welfare supports available to bereaved parents and carers could only be considered in a Budgetary context.

Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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1090. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the percentage of domiciliary care allowance applications that were declined in 2020 and 2021; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29244/22]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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In general, social welfare schemes with complex qualifying conditions like Domiciliary Care Allowance (DCA) can require a large amount of evidence on which to base the decision on entitlement.  If the required documentation is requested and is not submitted within the allotted timeframe it may result in a case being disallowed in the initial stages.  If the missing documentation is later supplied the case is reviewed and may be subsequently awarded.  This can result in multiple reviews being carried out on a single application and several disallowances being counted against that application notwithstanding the fact that the final decision is then ultimately that the claim is allowed.  It is also the case that applicants who submit an application at the end of a year may not receive a decision until the following year.  As such, it is not possible to provide an accurate  percentage of DCA claims that are declined for any given year.

The following is a breakdown of the number of applications that were received and the number of disallowal decisions issued in the years 2020 and 2021.

I would encourage all people who apply for DCA, or any other Social Welfare payments to provide as much information as possible with their application so that their claim can be decided at the earliest date possible.

I trust this clarifies the position for the Deputy.