Suppose a guy suffers the loss of a parent. So that, for reasons of poverty, he hurries to withdraw the last pension installment of the deceased, which has already matured. It is known, in fact, that as soon as the circumstance of the retiree’s death is made known, the social security institute suspends all payments. Except that theINPS, although the installment had already matured, he learns of the collection and denounces the guy. From here, therefore, begins a proceeding against him for scam. However, in the present case, it seems strange that the scam can be identified.
This, if only one thinks that the monthly salary had already matured and had only to be collected materially. It would have been different if the death of the parent had been hidden from INPS for the purpose of continuing to collect future pensions not yet matured. So, the question that arises is: “Should the pension already accrued be returned in the event of the death of the holder of the right? “. The answer on this point was provided by Cassation with sentence no. 28831 of 2018.
What has the Supreme Court established
Let us therefore try to clarify why the scam must be configured, despite the fact that the installments received have already accrued in the hands of the person who later died. The rule is that if the deceased was retired, the heirs must immediately communicate his death to INPS or another pension provider. This obligation also falls on those who had the proxy for the collection of the amount. Therefore, the Cassation clarified that continuing to receive the pension of the deceased is a crime. Therefore, any checks credited after death must not be cashed and, if you do, must be returned. Indeed, when the pension is credited to the bank or post office, it is the credit institution itself that returns the unpaid pensions to INPS.
The communication of the death is generally made by the Municipality which receives the death certificate and which therefore provides the necessary information. However, as anticipated, the heirs are also required to make such communication. To give an answer to the doubt that arose before, therefore, it is good to clarify that, in case of improper perception, the entire sum of the pension collected must be returned. And this, strangely, even if the death occurred when the sum had already matured.
Why should the already accrued pensions be repaid?
Considering that, on a logical level, we are unable to understand why the already accrued pension installment must be returned in the event of death, let us deepen on this point. Well, the reason is that the person who collects the pension is no longer entitled to collect the sum, despite the delegation. This is because, from the moment of death, the pension can only be paid to the heirs and, for this to happen, it is necessary to identify the legitimate subjects. In fact, the payment made in favor of a person no longer entitled, may involve the obligation for INPS to have to repay the sum to the heirs again. In short, even the collection of the pension already accrued constitutes a scam as the person who collects the accrual has no right to do so. This would ultimately be the answer provided by the Supreme Court.
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