Reassessment outcome not notified: reliance on payments received is protected

Attending a reassessment does not, by itself, prove that the beneficiary knows its adverse outcome. Where notification of the report is not established, reliance on subsequent payments must be considered. The Bari Court of Appeal addressed that distinction in judgment No. 1353 of 4 July 2023 concerning recovery of social assistance payments.

After a reassessment on 25 October 2021, INPS recalculated the benefit and demanded €3,875.50 for November 2021 to February 2022. The sums related to the previous medical status and benefit increases. The Tribunal had upheld recovery.

The Court of Appeal found no documentary evidence that the report had been communicated to the beneficiary. Nor had further circumstances been put forward showing awareness of the loss of medical eligibility and thus excluding legitimate expectations deserving protection.

The Court held that the medical commission’s conclusions could not be presumed known merely because the examination had taken place. In the absence of proven notification, continued payments could have led the recipient to rely on entitlement until learning of the overpayment demand.

The appeal succeeded, the €3,875.50 was declared not repayable and INPS was ordered to pay costs at both levels. The decision gives central importance to proof that the medical outcome was known. In this case, the reassessment date alone was insufficient to exclude the good faith of someone who continued receiving the benefit.

View the court decision (PDF) ↗

https://studiolegalecelentano.com/en/news/personal-assistance-allowance-and-failure-to-notify-the-reassessment-outcome