Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 9 April 2024
780. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of applicants refused for the domiciliary care allowance on first application; how many first applicants appealed this decision; how many first-time applicants were successful on appeal; how many were successful on a second application in 2021, 2022 and 2023, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14604/24]
View answerDomiciliary Care Allowance (DCA) s a monthly allowance payable in respect of a child aged under 16 who has a severe disability requiring continual or continuous care and attention substantially in excess of the care and attention normally required by a child of the same age and where the level of the child's disability is such that the child is likely to require this level of additional care and attention for at least 12 consecutive months.
The following table sets out the number of applicants that were refused DCA by my Department on first application (at the initial decision stage), the number of first applicants that appealed this decision, including the number of first-time applicants (applications) that were successful on appeal in the years 2021, 2022 and 2023. The number of DCA applicants (applications) that were partially allowed on appeal for the relevant year(s) is also included.
|
YEAR |
Applications refused during year |
Decisions Appealed during year |
Appeal Allowed |
Appeal Partially Allowed |
|
2021 |
2,478 |
896 |
533 |
25 |
|
2022 |
3,948 |
2,084 |
1,458 |
21 |
|
2023 |
4,076 |
1,934 |
927 |
20 |
It should be noted that statistics relating to the number of DCA applicants that are successful/ unsuccessful on a second, or subsequent application are not collated by my Department.
In some cases, more than one decision may be made on an application, where an applicant provides further information/documentary evidence and/or seeks a review of a decision, i.e. an application can be disallowed initially and then subsequently allowed on review, by a Deciding Officer. Applicants are advised to provide as much detail as possible at application stage, including any additional information and/or documentary evidence that is relevant, to ensure that all information is available for consideration in the decision and assessment process.
The number of DCA applications continued to increase during the above year(s) 2021, 2022 and 2023.
I trust this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
