June 29 2018 illawarra 
‘Ridiculous’ wait to process pension for seniors   

The Senior

Seniors have reported significant delays in getting an age pension.


IF YOU’RE planning on applying for an age pension you had better get in early and have some money in the bank to see you through the weeks or months it might take for the payment to begin.

Stephen Nichols, 67, of Ipswich in Queensland, has been waiting eight months to have his application approved, while Marg Rabbitt, of Charlestown in NSW, has been waiting since February.

They’re just two of the many readers who have contacted The Senior about delays in getting an age pension.

“I’ve lost all faith,” Mr Nichols said. “It’s ridiculous; I don’t know what to do.

“My wife contacted our local member of parliament who shrugged and said they’ve a lot on their plate.

“You have to jump through hoops, fill out all the forms and send all the corroborating information.”

Mr Nichols said he filled everything in “meticulously” and lodged the application online. He heard nothing.    

“We went to Centrelink and they said it’s out of their hands.

“We don’t know when we are going to see any money. No one seems interested in helping us.”

Ms Rabbitt’s experience is similar. The 70-year-old retired from primary school teaching earlier this year and applied for a pension.

“Centrelink said all the paperwork was OK, that everything was there,” she said.

“Then  I got an update saying it should be finalised by March 31. Then I got another update saying that some difficult claims took longer.

“So I contacted Centrelink again and they said there were no problems with my claim. But I’m still waiting.

“When I contacted Centrelink to find out what was happening I was told there was huge backlog of all types of claims.

“I’ve tried to be patient and understanding but I’ve had to draw on my superannuation to live and I don’t have a lot.”

The Department of Human Services told The Senior that where all the required information is provided, the median time to process an age pension claim is usually 49 days.

“We work hard to process all claims as quickly as possible,” a spokesperson said.

“Some complex claims can take longer and we understand this can be frustrating.

“Processing times can vary depending on the complexity of the individual case and how many claims have been submitted to the department at any one time.

“Age pension claims often involve assessing complex income and asset information, and we frequently need to seek additional information from the person making the claim.

“The department prioritises claims for people experiencing financial hardship and encourages anyone in these circumstances to contact us.”

Claims can be submitted up to 13 weeks before reaching age pension age (currently 65.5).

The spokesperson said the new streamlined online claim process ensured more claims contained all the information needed, so they could be processed as quickly as possible.

Following The Senior’s discussions with the Depart­ment of Human Services, Mr Nichols was contacted by a complaints manager. “I have gone from being forgotten for eight months to what seems to be a priority,” he said. Ms Rabbitt has had her claim approved and another retiree, who did not want to be named, received an offer of help from Centrelink.

Advocates call for urgent system overhaul

The Centrelink application process for the age pension needs an urgent overhaul, according to a key advocacy group for older Australians.

National Seniors Australia interim chief executive John McCallum said today age pension applicants had described the process as “too hard, too complicated and too long”.   

Joint research by National Seniors and digital financial planning company Retirement Essentials showed most applicants were dissatisfied with the service provided by Centrelink staff.

The joint research analysed the views of 530 National Seniors members who had applied for the age pension since 2016. It showed less than four in 10 – or 38.5 per cent – were satisfied with the process, 42.4 per cent were dissatisfied and 19 per cent ambivalent.

Applicants said their time and needs were not valued or recognised by Centrelink staff, describing the application process as “generally appalling”, and staff “unhelpful, disinterested and reluctant to answer questions”. 

One applicant said the mission of Centrelink appeared to be “to prevent as many people as possible from accessing income support”. Others complained of long wait times (whether phoning or visiting Centrelink offices), complicated forms and processes, and of receiving conflicting advice from different staff.

Professor McCallum said 82 per cent of seniors sought assistance from Centrelink, financial advisers, friends or family when applying for the age pension, rather than attempting it independently. Despite this, many applicants remained dissatisfied with the experience.

The report had identified clear areas for improvement in Centrelink training, internal processes and management.

Professor McCallum said it was essential the issues were addressed, given there were more than 700 applications for the age pension every working day, with a total of 174,000 applications processed in 2016-17.

“Our study provides clear evidence that senior Australians face unnecessary hurdles to access the age pension entitlements they rely on for their essential living expenses,” Professor McCallum said.

“The complexity of the Centrelink processes, combined with insufficient call centre operators, long wait times and insufficient Financial Information Service officers, is frustrating for older Australians.

“Today, Centrelink’s assistance is at the end of a long wait on the phone or in a queue at the local Centrelink office, an under-resourced (albeit competent) Financial Information Service, or an online service that has been poorly designed for the physical and digital capabilities and service needs of older people.

“While there are system improvements underway at Centrelink, they don’t appear to adequately address the frustrations faced by senior Australians. They are focussed on digital options that replace face-to-face services and age pension applicants do not appear to be a priority in the short or medium term.”

Centrelink call centre wait times increased last year, with almost 500,000 abandoned calls to the seniors help line.   

Professor McCallum said the Federal Government’s announcement of 1000 additional operators would help ease the burden on busy phone lines.

But other issues, such as the overly complex age pension application process, needed to be addressed.

“Systems can be complex but the entry can be made easy with good design. It’s critical that older consumers are involved in their design to ensure their useability. Similarly, attention to training and supervision can improve consumer experiences dramatically.”

Retirement Essentials chief executive Paul Rogan said the research went beyond the anecdotal descriptions of Centrelink being a “nightmare”, to a better understanding of the cause and scale of the problem for senior Australians.

“It is clear the system is not geared for seniors to independently (and confidently) apply for the age pension,” Mr Rogan said.

“Centrelink and other groups must work together to make it easier for those who are eligible to access the entitlements they rely on to fund their basic needs in retirement.

Centrelink call centre wait times increased last year, with almost 500,000 abandoned calls to the seniors help line.   

Its time wrote on Jul 1^st, 2018 at 8:51am:


to call tax payers grubs is disgusting...
read the whole thing where does it mention pensions won by unions.


http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/8e72c45...

HISTORY OF PENSIONS AND OTHER BENEFITS IN AUSTRALIA

(This article has been contributed by the Department of Social Security)


At the turn of the century there was no social security system in Australia. Charitable relief was provided to needy persons by voluntary organisations, in some cases with the assistance of government grants.

The main areas of need which attracted charitable assistance were the 'sick poor', neglected children, old people who were destitute and women who had been deserted or who had 'fallen' pregnant. The unemployed were assisted by grants of wages, or rations, in return for relief work provided by the government.

THE BEGINNINGS

The Commonwealth of Australia was formed on I January 1901 by federation of the six States under a written constitution which, among other things, authorised the new Commonwealth Parliament to legislate in respect of age and invalid pensions. In the event, the Commonwealth did not exercise this power until June 1908 when legislation providing for the introduction of means-tested 'flat-rate' age and invalid pensions was passed. The new pensions, which were financed from general revenue, came into operation in July 1909 and December 1910 respectively, superseding State age pension schemes which had been introduced in New South Wales (1900), Victoria (1900) and Queensland (1908) and an invalid pension scheme introduced in New South Wales (1908).

The new pension was paid to men from age 65. It was paid to women at age 60, but not until December 1910. The age pension was also subject to a residence qualification of 25 years which was reduced to 20 years shortly after introduction. A residence qualification of five years applied to the invalid pension.

In 1912 the Commonwealth introduced a maternity allowance. This allowance was a lump sum cash grant payable to a mother on the birth of a child.

1914-1940

No new Commonwealth social security payments were introduced until World War II. There were, however, several notable developments in the States, including: in New South Wales, the introduction of widows' pensions in 1926 and child endowment in 1927; and in Queensland the introduction of an unemployment insurance scheme in 1923.

The principal changes in age and invalid pensions during this period were in the rates and the means test. A provision for automatic increases in pension rates on the basis of changes in the cost of living was introduced in 1933, repealed in 1937 and reintroduced in 1940. Measures which would have placed pensions on a social insurance basis and introduced a number of new cash payments were proposed in 1928 and 1938 but were not implemented.

The Commonwealth Department of Social Services was created in 1939 and became fully operative in 1941. Pensions had previously been administered within the Department of the Treasury.

1941-1949

Child endowment was introduced in 1941. This provided a regular flat-rate cash payment, free of means test, to parents (usually the mother) for children after the first child. The New South Wales child endowment scheme was abolished at the same time.

Widows' pensions were introduced in 1942. As in the case of age and invalid pensions they were flat-rate means-tested payments financed from general revenue. Those eligible included deserted wives, divorced women, and women whose husbands were in prison or a mental hospital. A residence qualification of five years applied. The new scheme superseded the New South Wales widows' pension.

There were several developments in 1943. Funeral benefits were introduced; these were lump sum grants payable for the funeral costs or a pensioner. Wife's allowance was introduced for an incapacitated male pensioner with a dependent spouse. A reciprocal agreement on social security was concluded with New Zealand. In addition, automatic cost-of-living adjustments to pension rates were repealed when their application would have resulted in a rate reduction.

There was a major extension of the social security system in 1945 with the introduction or Commonwealth unemployment and sickness benefits in the form of flat-rate payments financed from general revenue and subject to an income test. The Queensland scheme of unemployment insurance was superseded by the new benefits. The introduction of these new benefits took place against a background of major changes in the revenue-raising functions of the Commonwealth and the States. The Commonwealth took sole responsibility for income tax in 1942, and thus expanded substantially its capacity to raise revenue. While the exigencies of World War II had much to do with this change, its broader effect was to facilitate an expansion of the Commonwealth's role in social security as in other areas.

There was a further development of specific relevance to social security in 1945. The Commonwealth split the personal income tax into two components. One, the social services contribution, was to be used exclusively to finance social security cash payments.

Its time wrote on Jul 1^st, 2018 at 8:51am:


Doesn't matter who you vote for. If you qualify, you qualify.

Perhaps it would help if people realised they can apply 13 weeks prior to eligibility.

And of course make sure you have all your ducks in a row.

Bam wrote on Jul 1^st, 2018 at 3:24pm:



what RED TAPE is that??????.... I can now check everything on the net...I dont even have to front up

what red tape does centrelink have???...you go in sit in front of someone who takes every detail...punches it in a computer..

unfortunately there are a few people out there who do not tell the truth...

like women getting a singles pension when she does in fact have a live in......and some even own houses....and send money out of the country.....

should the taxpayers turn a blind eye to those???....

thankfully, i never have and never will be visiting a centrelink office.

i have a medicare card which has been swiped on about 2 occasions in the last 15 years.

i think that one of the goals young people should make is to go into contribution in their energy, their creativity , their relationships and even their relationship with government.

be proud to pay tax as it is giving of your energy

see those who need to "get" and need to "take" as having fallen off the noble path.

now, very small infants, the sick and injured, the frail elederly need to 'take".

but anyone else who is interested in "taking" (and centrelink is institutionalised taking) is gong down a very dangerous path.  because when you feel you need to take, you will carry this behaviour over to your relationships, to your career, to your lifes work.

if the ultimate trajectory of your life is "how much can i take and how much can i get" then

then

then

i dont know if their is a worse idea then to do that