Insurance companies are keeping most of what the law has set aside for would be survivor beneficiaries. According to the Superintendent of Pensions (Sipen), as of 30 June 2019, families of some 18,000 pensioners had requested survivor benefits. Of these, 7,800 of these requests had been accepted and another 267 are pending. This means that over 10,000 families have been denied any benefits as survivors of an insured and pensioned individual.
Are these all of the cases, asks the Diario Libre? No, there are more, many more, according to the number of persons who have not even filed a request for survivors’ benefits. There are, according to the Sipen, 3.7 million persons affiliated in the system, and the June report says that there have been a bit over 63,000 deaths of insured persons. This means that more than 45,000 families have not even filed for benefits. This means that just 13% have received benefits and 87% have either been denied or have not filed a claim.
The Social Security Programs Customers Defense Agency (DIDA) notes some of the roadblocks. They said that the deadline for filing a claim should be without limit. Until 2015 there was a two-year limit for filing, and because of public outcry, this has been extended to seven years. If no claims are filed, all of the accrued benefits remain with the insurer.
Another stumbling block, according to the DIDA, is the age of the person covered: 60 was the minimum up until 2015 and it is now 65. Perhaps the greatest obstacle, notwithstanding, is red tape. Survivors must present an Act of Known Heirs that implies the payment of inheritance taxes at the DGII. There are also Notary Acts that require strict formats and more money. This is a stamped act that is signed by an authorized authority that validates the documents presented. These are the birth and death certificates and the marriage certificate required to file a claim.
The head of the DIDA, Nélsida Marmolejos told reporters that the lack of information and orientation is the reason for the low number of requests for these benefits.
The system as is works in favor of the insurance companies. Rafael Pepe Abreu, the head of the National Confederation of Syndicate Unity (CNUS), added that in the early days of the pension programs, the worker was not told that he must write the names of his beneficiaries on his pension fund inscription form. He said: “They didn’t register their family members. The people just filled in their personal data. Then, when they die, the AFPs, since there are no known survivors, just wait out the deadline of five years, and after that it is difficult for the family to go through all of the bureaucratic hassles to receive the survivor benefits.”
The Dominican Association of Pension Fund Administrators (ADAFP) told Diario Libre that the rights of the relatives of deceased insured persons do not expire.
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Diario Libre
21 October 2019