Question NW4207 to the Minister of Social Development
02 January 2024 - NW4207
Smalle, Mr JF to ask the Minister of Social Development
(1)What systems are in place to verify and prohibit deceased SA Social Security Agency (SASSA) grant recipients or card holders from getting paid; (2) whether there have been instances where deceased SASSA grant recipients were paid; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what (a) (i) total number of such recipients were wrongly paid in the past three years and (ii) steps were taken to recoup the funds and (b) is the monetary value of such payments in each of the past three years?
Reply:
1. SASSA works closely with the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) on deceased data validation and conducts monthly checks to confirm the life status of beneficiaries before a payment is generated. Payment is effected to beneficiaries who are confirmed to be alive, as per validation outcomes.
(2) Yes, there are instances where deceased social grant recipients have been wrongly paid. This happens when a grant beneficiary dies after proof of life is confirmed by DHA and when the payment run is released to the beneficiary’s bank account.
(a) The numbers of such social grant recipients in the past three years are as follows:
(i) 2021/2022 = 32920
2022/2023 = 26512
2023/2024 = 15204
(ii) To prevent the withdrawal of social grant monies, SASSA freezes the accounts of the deceased beneficiaries through Post Bank and follows up with a letter to the next of kin to return the money to SASSA. Where a withdrawal has already taken place, a SASSA debt recovery process is followed.
b) The monetary value of such payments in each of the past three years is as follows:
2021/2022 = R59 256 000
2022/2023 = R50 372 000
2023/2024 = R31 928 000