“Laurentian method” for dealing with claims for allowance parents is much more expensive and, for now, no faster than that of the ministry.

With an average of 114,000 euros per victim, the “Laurentien method” for dealing with the damage suffered by allowance parents is much more generous than the ministry's scheme. For now, the method is no faster. 42 parents have signed a so-called collective settlement agreement so far.Charlotte Huisman March 15, 2024, 10:57

Princess Laurentien talks to allowance parents. Image by Harry Cock/de Volkskrant This is evident from the report on the first experiences with the new way of working, published by the Equal Recovery Foundation itself on Thursday. With the support of Princess Laurentien, allowance parents have developed a method that should smooth the stalled claims handling of the benefits affair. State Secretary Aukje de Vries (Allowances, VVD) decided to give the plan a chance, with a 4.5 million euro subsidy for implementation. The compensation itself comes from the large pot that the State makes available. In October, the Equal Recovery Foundation began a trial with the collective settlement agreement. More than thirteen hundred victims have now registered. They are paired with a so-called listening writer, who must record what has happened in their lives since the wrongful recoveries from the tax authorities. Two thousand volunteers are now ready to record those stories. Then, a professional claims analyst calculates the appropriate compensation based on the events described, such as broken family ties, quitting a study or losing a job — the compensation is based on current personal injury practice. If the parent agrees with the calculated amount, the agreement will be signed. The fully established method should offer an alternative to the Actual Damage Commission set up by the ministry, which has completely stalled. Parents can go there if they want to have their additional damage reimbursed, apart from the overrecovered childcare allowance. There, they must be able to prove a causal relationship with the benefits affair, which is difficult years later. More than three thousand parents have reported to this committee, which completes approximately four cases per week. The ministry expects that around one tenth of the 34 thousand recognized benefit victims want a calculation of their additional damage. The Laurentien method is not much faster in the start-up phase yet. It is also remarkable that, on average, the amount of damage paid out is more than double that of the Actual Damage Commission. The ministry has not yet provided an official response, but behind-the-scenes sources say there are major concerns about the amount calculated under the new method. “Out of distrust” Stakeholders fear a stampede on the collective settlement agreement. The fear is that calculating victims will figure out what to tell them to achieve a high damage calculation. Stories about this would already be circulated in closed groups of allowance parents on social media. Inexperienced listening writers would write down the parents' story indiscriminately and too few supporting documents would be requested. Princess Laurentien is annoyed by this suggestion “out of distrust,” she previously said in a podcast. “We work from trust, but we do ask for documentation to be substantiated. “The cooperation between the ministry and the Equal Recovery Foundation is difficult, according to the report. The officials and those involved in the foundation “do not always speak the same language”. Sources around the foundation say that, in their view, the ministry places too much emphasis on the amount paid out and the speed of the process. Heard and acknowledgedThat's while the basic idea of the method is that the parent has control and goes through the process at their own pace. The participating parents appreciate this way of working and feel heard and acknowledged, according to initial experiences. The foundation also emphasizes that the implementation costs of this method are very low compared to the other parts of the recovery operation. The amounts paid to parents are therefore not too high, but do justice to the years of suffering. In turn, the Ministry finds the Equal Recovery Foundation too stubborn. Sources around the ministry say that the Secretary of State wants to be able to make more adjustments, for example when it comes to the amounts paid out. A princess's involvement is experienced as complicated. The trial is behind schedule. The intention was that the first evaluation would be published in January. This report has now been published just before the committee debate in the House of Representatives next Tuesday on the claims settlement of the benefits affair. For Secretary of State De Vries, this document is not yet the evaluation she needs to decide whether to use the method on a large scale in this way. According to her, too few settlement agreements have been concluded for that, she writes to the House of Representatives. “It is our joint commitment to make this route a success.” Read also selected by the EditorsReportVolunteers write down stories of allowance parents in a trial for faster damage repair: 'It gives a warm feeling'NEWSChairman of the allowance parents committee expelled after just eight months for slow processingNEWSPromising plan for faster compensation for allowance parents, with support from Princess LaurentienREPORTAGEIn Number 90, the allowance parents are working with the government to revolutionize