Since 2021, the UK Department of Work and Pensions has mistakenly paid more than $1 billion in benefits to deceased citizens, the Telegraph reports.
"In a costly mistake, the Department for Work and Pensions paid out £850 million ($1.1 billion) to benefit recipients after they died," the article said.
According to the paper, it is not known which types of benefits were affected by the 2.6 million errors recorded since 2021, but it is believed to have affected unemployment benefits, pension payments and mental health benefits. Authorities have recovered less than half of the amounts improperly distributed.
Meanwhile, welfare benefits cost British taxpayers around £300 billion (about $400 billion) a year.
