The Government forgets about the victims: Only 11 families have received death aid

Two months after the tragedy that devastated the Valencian Community, the promised aid has barely arrived and the feeling of abandonment multiplies as the days go by. Neighbors show their desperation every time the media asks them and complaints skyrocket due to the lack of diligence in granting aid and the slowness with which applications are processed. According to data provided by Moncloa, only 5% of applicants have managed to collect advance payments to be able to recover homes or belongings lost during the flood. And definitive help comes with a dropper. Of the 16.6 billion that Pedro Sánchez promised to allocate to reconstruction, only 910 million have arrived, less than 5.7% of the total.

Furthermore, more than half of this money is not aid, but rather credits to be repaid. Thus, the Government reissues the model it used in the pandemic, when the State guaranteed the 140,000 million that the bank lent and generated a default rate that exceeds 3.5% among SMEs and the self-employed – reaching 4.16% in the smallest businesses. . Almost half of the total amount of the aid package is credits guaranteed by the State through the Official Credit Institute (ICO) and funds from the Insurance Compensation Consortium (CCS) – constituted with contributions from insurers as a mandatory financial guarantee that covers extraordinary risks.

According to the latest update from the Executive, of the 338,773 registered applications, 283,655 have been processed and only 94,634 of them have been finalized, less than 28%, although only 5% have received the money. Regarding direct aid for personal injuries, materials in housing and belongings, in establishments and communities of owners, expenses of local corporations and for the provision of goods or services – of which 35,000 requests were registered –, less than 32 have been paid. million, so on average barely 914 euros have been distributed. Even more bloody is that only 11 families have received death aid, despite the fact that there were 227 deaths.

Entrepreneurs, associations and entities have stated on countless occasions that the approved amounts are small and barely cover 20% of what was lost by companies and households, since the amount of aid depends on the volume of operations in 2023. In the case For companies, the amount depends on the volume of operations in 2023. Thus, for SMEs with a turnover of less than one million euros, the aid will be just 10,000 euros. For those companies with an operating volume of between 1 and 2 million, the aid will be 20,000 euros; 40,000 euros if it has been between two and six million; 80,000 euros in the case of a volume between 6 and 10 million euros; and affected companies with more than 10 million in transaction volume in 2023 will have aid of 150,000 euros. For the self-employed, the aid will be 5,000 euros. “These are ridiculous figures given the volume of losses we have suffered,” business sources point out to LA RAZÓN.

For the countryside, the situation is not better. The Valencian Farmers Association (AVA-Asaja) warns that more than 80% of Valencian farmers and ranchers affected by DANA will be left without direct aid of 5,000 euros because the requirements established in state regulations exclude producers in time partial and retired, who represent the majority of the Valencian agricultural sector. And there is one more unpleasant surprise. Nor will those farmers who were not in the census of professional businessmen and retainers (form 036 or 037) before October 28 receive anything due to a correction made at the last minute in the decree law on direct aid to the agricultural sectors published in the BOE. .

And the merchants are practically up in arms. Business employers have taken a step forward to challenge the blocking of compensation by the Insurance Compensation Consortium. The Spanish Confederation of Commerce (CEC) and Confecomerç have reported that the payment of compensation has been paralyzed, since less than 0.40% has been paid to businesses. This “inefficiency” is generating “a significant economic impact and hindering the already complicated recovery of the affected businesses,” by making it impossible for establishments to begin repair work, replenish inventories or acquire necessary equipment to resume their activity.

Entrepreneurs and SMEs also criticize that the current processing system presents structural problems, by forcing the presentation of budgets from suppliers overwhelmed by high demand, which delays access to the money from the contracted policy. There are also “depreciated valuations of key tools and machinery and there is a lack of effective solutions from financial institutions” because, despite the agreement to advance compensation at rate 0, “banks require guarantees that the affected merchants cannot provide,” employers warn. Likewise, they regret the “inefficiency” in the management of expert reports with “a real collapse” – less than 22,000 requests for compensation from SMEs and the self-employed have been paid, of which only a thousand are from businesses – and indicate that if each expert had If three files were processed daily during the 50 days since DANA, 255,000 direct requests could have been resolved.

The Ministry of Economy responds that of the more than 910 million euros in aid delivered, 598 million correspond to compensation from the Insurance Compensation Consortium. They also assure that the CCS has quintupled the number of experts that usually work with the entity; has multiplied by ten the number of telephone answering positions; It has signed a special operating procedure with 38 insurance entities to collaborate in the appraisal and management of claims files and has reinforced the computer systems to increase their capacity for this exchange of files; It has reinforced the workforce by hiring new processors and has created a team with employees from other areas of the CCS.

Of the more than 8,000 Valencian businesses that were affected by DANA to some degree and in sectors such as food and hospitality, a minimal number have reopened. Their losses – as they already have the products from the Christmas campaign – represent up to 35% of the annual turnover. For this reason, the “delay in economic reactivation also affects the social fabric, since these businesses are the livelihood of thousands of families and contribute significantly to the local economy, recalls the confederation,” the CEC recalls.

The effectiveness and speed in the delivery of financial aid by private entities has been very different. The president of Mercadona, Juan Roig, was the first to commit to delivering up to 40 million for his employees affected by the flood. Its delivery was almost immediate. For his part, the founder of Inditex, Amancio Ortega, has delivered 100 million to 40 municipalities that suffered to a greater or lesser extent from the tragedy. The money is already in their accounts, but the distribution is being slower because the councils themselves establish the distribution criteria. Numerous entities, associations, companies and individuals from all over Spain have made million-dollar donations, which have been channeled through NGOs.

The Valencian Generalitat confirmed this week that 854 million euros in direct aid have already been implemented out of the 1,324 million destined to meet the needs of those affected by the DANA floods on October 29. Of the total amount mobilized, 64.5% corresponds to direct aid without bureaucracy. As confirmed by sources from the Valencian Executive, the granting of aid “is progressing at a good pace” and the 200 million euro package with aid of 6,000 euros for families has already been launched; 50 million for housing rentals; and different lines worth 266 million euros for companies, self-employed workers and ERTE workers. 250 million euros have also been allocated to compensate 2,500 euros for each person who has lost their car due to the floods; 20 million for irrigators; another 62 million for municipalities and 6 million euros for the cultural sector. The Generalitat points out other additional measures, such as personal income tax deductions for taxpayers in the affected areas. A package of 100 million has also been enabled for direct aid aimed at maintaining employment and economic reactivation.