Mark Ward
Ceist:49. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Social Protection to outline the appeals process for domiciliary care allowance payments that are refused; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18431/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraThursday, 25 April 2024
Ceisteanna (49)
Freagraí scríofa
The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions.
The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Claim decisions taken by the Department’s Deciding Officers and Designated Persons are appealable to the Chief Appeals Officer. The same process is applied to all appeals, including those in relation to Domiciliary Care Allowance.
The time taken to process an appeal includes all aspects of the appeal process including initial validation of the appeal to ensure that adequate grounds have been provided within the statutory time limits, the time spent in the Department reviewing the decision in light of the appeal contentions and/or preparing the appeal submission and determining the appeal. A significant proportion of cases are revised in favour of the appellant by the Department during the review process. In some cases, further investigation may be required at that point (e.g., in relation to means or medical issues) and this can add to the time taken to process an appeal.
The nature of the appeals process impacts on the processing times - it is quasi-judicial in nature with Appeals Officers being required to decide all appeals on a ‘de-novo’ basis. In addition, appeals decisions are themselves subject to review by the High Court and must be written up to quasi-judicial standards. Appeals may be determined on a summary basis or by means of an oral hearing. Where an oral hearing is required, the logistics involved in scheduling the hearing and giving the appellant and any other witnesses adequate notice adds to the timeframe involved.
Ensuring that appeal processing times are as short as possible is a priority for the Chief Appeals Officer. The desire to process appeals quickly must be balanced with the competing demand to ensure that decisions are consistent and of high quality and made in accordance with the legislative provisions and the general principles of fair procedures and natural justice.
Where a claimant has been refused a social welfare payment, regardless of the scheme involved, and is appealing that decision, if their means are insufficient to meet their needs it is open to them to apply for supplementary welfare allowance in the interim. If their application for supplementary welfare allowance is refused, they can also appeal that decision. The supplementary welfare allowance appeal is prioritised for attention within the Appeals Office as soon as the appeal file and submission is received from the Department. I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.