Services Australia confirm major change after grieving mother received distressing 'overpayment' notice

Services Australia has confirmed a major change after a bereaved mother was sent a debt collection notice for child support that had been overpaid for her deceased son.

Jennifer Brankin, whose nine-year-old son Alexander died on April 28, received the notice demanding repayment of $162.44 just two weeks after his funeral on May 10.

"It's not even about the money, it's how it was worded," she told 9honey at the time.

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"It's the fact they don't see I'm left carrying the mental load and finances now that he's gone."

Jennifer said the notice was sent despite Alexander's father telling Services Australia not to collect the funds.

After receiving Jennifer's feedback, Services Australia has now confirmed to 9honey that it has changed procedures to better support customers going through unthinkable loss in future.

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"Our thoughts continue to be with Ms Brankin," Services Australia's General Manager Hank Jongen tells 9honey.

"It took a lot of courage to share her circumstances at such a difficult time. We know the death of a child is a deeply traumatic and emotional experience.

"Her valuable feedback has resulted in service delivery improvements to ensure the agency is providing a trauma informed service that better supports customers following the death of a parent or a child.

"The improved process prevents our systems from automatically issuing letters and recovering an overpayment before customer contact occurs."

Jongen added that Services Australia will allow at least 21 days after the death of their loved one before making phone contact to talk about their circumstances.

"If phone contact is unsuccessful, we'll send a letter ­– but this letter is simply to ask the family to get in touch and does not notify of any potential overpayment," Jongen said.

Jennifer was notified of the change children's hospice Bear Cottage, where Alexander passed away.

"I just wanted to follow up and let you know the outcome of our contact with Services Australia.

"While they weren't able to discuss any specific cases due to privacy and confidentiality, they did let Nora know that they have reviewed their internal processes and made some changes in response to the media coverage of your experience. It was reassuring to hear that this has led to some constructive action.

"Services Australia explained that once they've been formally notified and confirmed the death of a child, they aim to contact families within 21 days if there are any outstanding payments or arrears. They intend to phone the family first, and only if they're unable to make contact do they send a letter – importantly, this letter is simply to ask the family to get in touch, not to raise overpayments or debts.

"They also clarified that if a family contacts the Centrelink Bereavement Line, this information is passed on to the Child Support Agency. However, there can be a delay of a few days before it reaches them, and the 21-day period begins once the formal notification is received."

As a result of the change, Bear Cottage will now ask families if child support is in place for their child and "recommend that they contact the Child Support Agency directly to notify them of the death".

"We'll also let families know that we can provide a letter confirming the death, which may be accepted in place of a death certificate in the early stages," the e-mail continued.

"Thank you again, Jenn, for sharing your experience so openly. It's already led to some improvements, and I hope these changes will make a real difference for other families.

"We think of Alexander 'The Great' so fondly. Please feel free to reach out any time or let me know if you would like me to call."

Jennifer tells 9honey she was eventually told she would not need to repay the amount. She is hopeful the change will help other families moving forward.

At the time she received the notice she was under enormous strain, having just buried her son Alexander who lived his nine years with life-limiting condition Joubert Syndrome.

She was also caring for her toddler son Elias, and moving out of the home she could no longer afford following Alexander's death as well as paying for his burial and wake.

She has also been trying to pull together enough funds to secure a burial plot that has been offered to her near where Alexander has been laid to rest.

"The plot just across from where Alexander is opened up, and that's $19,500. I'm going to have to sell my car to make it happen," she says.

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"I have signed the contract and given a $5,000 deposit."

She said following the publication of her article with 9honey she was in regular contact with Services Australia who were "calling me, checking in with me and trying to see if there were any other funds I'm eligible for".

"That was really helpful," she concluded.

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