§ Mr. PondTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the average length of time taken between receipt of invoice and payment of funeral expenses by the Social Fund. [113634]
§ Angela EagleThe administration of benefits is a matter for Peter Mathison, Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to my hon. Friend.
Letter from Peter Mathison to Mr. Chris Pond, dated 10 March 2000:
The Secretary of State has asked me to respond to your recent question asking about the average length of time taken between receipt of invoice and payment of funeral expenses by the Social Fund.The Benefits Agency (BA) does not record the date of receipt of funeral invoices in connection with claims for funeral payments, as an invoice or bill is not required in every case. For example, applications made in advance of the funeral may be determined using a "contract" between the customer and the Funeral Director.We do however collect information about length of time taken from the date the application is received in the office to the date a decision is issued. This data does not distinguish between decisions making a full award, a partial award or a refusal. The Performance Indicator for Funeral Payments is that 90% of applications should be determined within 35 days. For the period April 1999-February 2000 BA received 62,557 Funeral Payment applications. 60,411 (96.57%) of these applications were determined within 35 days.I hope this is helpful.
§ Mr. PondTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate the cost of increasing the amount allowable for funeral expenses under the Social Fund to(a) £800 and (b) £1,000. [113632]
§ Angela EagleThe Social Fund Funeral Payment scheme aims to cover the reasonable cost of a simple, dignified funeral. Therefore, under current legislation, where an eligible person is deemed to have good reason for taking responsibility for funeral expenses, the scheme allows for the fees levied by the burial authorities and crematoria (in so far as it is necessary to incur them), specified travel expenses and up to £600 for any other50W funeral expenses. If this £600 for other funeral expenses were to be increased to £800 or £1,000, it is estimated that the net programme expenditure would increase by £7.4 million and £12.8 million respectively.
§ Mr. PondTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of applications to the Social Fund for funeral expenses are refused(a) in whole and (b) in part. [113633]
§ Angela EagleStatistics compiled so far for 1999—2000 indicate that of the total number of claims made to the Social Fund for Funeral Payments, 37 per cent. are wholly refused and 56 per cent. result in a partial award.