Welfare amnesty is badly needed

Claimants receiving an overpayment should be allowed solve the issue without penalty, writes Aengus Ó Snodaigh

MANY newspaper headlines are devoted to social welfare fraud but the reality is that the majority of overpayments are because of genuine errors. But the level of fraud and error in the social welfare system is estimated to account for just 3.5% of its €20.5bn budget. Within that, less than one third is as a result of fraud and this figure is dropping every year. The other two thirds of overpayments are accounted for by customer and departmental error.

A significant number of people have become aware that they are receiving an overpayment, but are afraid to tell the department, because they fear they will be asked to pay it back, and literally could not afford it.