Only €600k of €10m in emergency flood fund used

JUST €600,000 of the Government’s emergency flood relief fund of €10 million has been allocated to victims so far amid union concern over the manpower needed to process the claims.

Figures from the Department of Social and Family Affairs show that about 1,000 households have had their claims processed, with more than 1,600 payments made in total for the flooding in November.

According to the department, the average payment per household is €600, with 40 payments in excess of €2,000 and 100 payments in excess of €1,000.

The majority (400) of the payments were made in Cork, followed by Galway with 300 payments. One hundred payments were made to households in the midlands and 60 in south Tipperary, with the remainder in areas such as Carlow, Kildare and Limerick.

However, community welfare officers (CWOs) in charge of administering the claims have said more staff may be required to deal with the rush of claims expected over the next few months.

Kevin Figgis, SIPTU CWO branch organiser, said there had been “a lack of clarity” from the HSE over the status of CWOs directed to deal with flood compensation claims as they have been offered contracts lasting just weeks, instead of three or six months.

“On paper the HSE [which pays CWOs] has said they have agreed to extend the contracts of people dealing with elements of flood relief.

“The difficulty that we have is that there is a distinct lack of clarity regarding the contracts those people have received.”

He also said that, to date, 25 extra CWOs – recommended following a departmental and HSE joint review last year to deal with existing pressures caused by the growing jobless numbers – had not been appointed.

He said flood damage claims were “a key issue” and that processing claims could be a “slow process”. “What we would be requiring is that the services that have been provided are, at the very least, maintained to see the situation finalised.”

The HSE rejected the claims, with a spokesperson stating that additional CWOs had been trained and that they would be retained beyond dealing with flood claims: “There is no question of them being sent back to their substantive posts.”

An initial sum of €10m was put aside for the Humanitarian Assistance Scheme to help people who suffered damage to their home and its basic contents – carpets, flooring, furniture, household appliances and bedding, not covered by insurance – and in some cases, structural damage.

A department spokesperson said: “There is no evidence of any significant backlog of claims undecided. Very few large-scale claims have been made as houses requiring substantial works are by and large still flooded and owners have not yet established the cost of repair. It is expected that large-scale claims will be received over the coming weeks and months.”