Children in benefits scandal sue Dutch state for compensation
Children of parents in the childcare benefits scandal have summoned the Dutch government for the damages they suffered. If the court rules in their favor, the Dutch State could face another hefty bill in this scandal. Because how do you put a price tag on a stable childhood, personal injury lawyer Cyril Spiertz, acting on behalf of six children of benefits scandal mother Margreet ten Pas, told the Telegraaf.
Like the other parents in the benefits scandal, the Tax Authority wrongly labeled Ten Pas as a fraudster, stopped her childcare allowance, and ordered her to pay back the amounts already received. She lost her farm and her dog kennel. She ended up living in a holiday home in the woods for years. If that hadn’t happened and Ten Pas could continue to afford to provide for her family, her children could have ended up following higher professional education instead of vocational education, may not have suffered study delays, and could have had a stable childhood with all their needs met.
Notably, this is a civil case, while the government has so far been handling the compensation of parents via administrative law. Spiertz is trying to have the damage suffered by the children determined on an individual basis. If he succeeds, the damage amount will likely exceed the damage suffered by parents many times over. There are many more children than parents, and the lawyer has several victims ready to litigate.
The State has consistently argued that children do not have an independent right to compensation, because it was their parents who received the childcare allowance and had to pay it back. Spiertz argues that without children, there would be no childcare allowance. The allowance is specifically to provide for the children, and by taking that away, the State acted directly unlawfully toward the children.
The Ministry of Finance, which is responsible for the recovery operation for the parents, currently estimated at 11.5 billion euros, “finds it regrettable to stand in court against victims or their children,” a spokesperson told the Telegraaf. “The state has a different view on the position taken by the lawyer and children.” According to the spokesperson, it is far from a foregone conclusion that the court will rule in the children’s favor. The burden of proof is much heavier in civil proceedings, he said.
