James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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112. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection how he plans to deal with the very slow delivery of reimbursements from the humanitarian assistance scheme despite saying at the beginning it would take mere days. [7935/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Humanitarian Assistance Scheme (HAS), administered by my department through the Community Welfare Service (CWS), was activated on 23 January 2025 to assist householders across the country affected by Storm Éowyn. The purpose of the HAS is to prevent hardship by providing financial support to people in the aftermath of severe weather or other exceptional events and who are not able to meet costs for essential needs, household items and, in some instances, structural repair.

In dealing with emergency events, the CWS generally adopts a three-stage approach.

• Stage 1 provides emergency support payments (food/clothing/personal items) in the immediate aftermath of the event.

• Stage 2 involves the replacement of white goods, basic furniture items and other essential household items.

• Stage 3 is to identify what longer term financial support is required, including plastering, dry-lining, relaying of floors, electrical re-wiring and painting.

My Department is currently working hard to process the large volume of HAS claims that has been received since Storm Éowyn happened on the 24th of January. It has triaged all claims and identified those that are most urgent - predominantly Stage 1 claims.

To date, a total of 57,325 claims have been received and registered. 11,999 claims have been awarded to date.

With respect to Stage 2 and Stage 3 claims it is important to note that the HAS is not a compensation scheme and, generally, does not pay for losses or costs that can reasonably be covered by insurance. Some exceptions are made where a person can demonstrate a valid reason for non-insurance and where they satisfy the income tests of the scheme. This approach is necessary to ensure that the State does not become the default insurer for households who could reasonably be expected to arrange for their own insurance risks.

Claim processing levels within the CWS are closely monitored and I can assure the Deputy that claims are being processed as quickly as possible, but it may take longer than usual to process all claims due to the very high numbers of claims received. I would like to thank all persons affected by Storm Éowyn and who have submitted HAS claims for their patience.

I trust this clarifies the matter.