The number of unanswered calls to Centrelink almost doubled in the year to 31 March 2024 to more than 11 million.
The shocking figure was revealed in data from Services Australia as Centrelink also issued an urgent warning over payments to large numbers of Australians.
The new figures show that a staggering 11,268,048 reports of congestion were received through Centrelink’s social security and welfare lines, up from 6,997,300 in the previous 12-month period.
Call notifications are automatic alerts that notify people in the queue that staff is too busy to answer the call.
People trying to reach someone are redirected to online services, but the connection is abruptly disconnected.
Nearly two million of the calls that were abandoned ended up on the disability, illness and carer lines, and those that did get through still had to wait an average of 47 minutes.
And those huge numbers don’t even include the unanswered calls from Medicare and Centrelink aged care clients, who were hung up on more than a million times.
That number was an alarming 27,500 percent increase from the previous year, when only 4,067 people were hanged.
The number of unanswered calls to Centrelink almost doubled in the year to 31 March 2024 to over 11 million (stock image)
Disgruntled Centrelink clients are venting their frustrations about the situation on social media.
“It’s really funny that Centrelink keeps emailing saying… that we should call them. Even funnier is that I’ve tried calling them every day for the past week and they keep hanging up on me,” one person wrote sarcastically.
Another said: ‘It’s like Centrelink doesn’t answer to me over the phone, but I lose my payments if I don’t speak to someone. I can’t just take a week off (from work) and hopefully get through.’
A third person, who had an issue ‘that could not be resolved on the Centrelink app or website’, was also furious at being hung up on.
“Your solution is to call that number? And then what? Keep calling and getting hung up on until I go crazy?” they tweeted.
“There’s no queue, there’s no call back service. It puts the responsibility of fixing a Centrelink error on me, and then demands that I spend hours of my time fixing it.”
According to Services Australia, thousands of additional staff have been hired to work with Centrelink, and by April they were trained to take calls and process claims.
According to General Manager Hank Jongen, the use of traffic jam messages has been halved since January and waiting times are shorter.
“Overall, Centrelink call waiting times have dropped from an average of 31 minutes in January to around 25 minutes in June, depending on the day,” he said 7News.
However, the new employees and their colleagues have a huge backlog of claims to deal with, and for vulnerable people the situation is still very difficult.
“Sometimes people call because their payments have been reduced or stopped, meaning they can no longer pay their rent or buy food,” said Edwina MacDonald, acting CEO of the Australian Council of Social Services (ACoSS).
‘Long waiting times are a major problem because people who need help do not get it.
“It is very worrying that there are over 11 million congestion messages, blocking the caller and asking them to try again at another time because the lines are too busy.”
Ms MacDonald said ACoSS welcomed the $1.8 billion investment to hire 3,000 new staff, but that “many are still waiting far too long”.
‘The government must continue to invest in Services Australia, including by recruiting and retaining skilled staff, after many years of cuts to this vital service.’
Meanwhile, people receiving Centrelink benefits who are moving overseas have been warned to inform the government of their plans.
“There are rules that govern how travelling outside Australia may affect your debit or discount card,” the agency said, depending on “the debit or discount card you get”.
People receiving benefits are reminded that their benefits may be adjusted or even stopped altogether if they leave Australia.
Centrelink customers are advised to check their accounts regularly via the myGov website and inform the agency of their travel plans.
“If you are unable to tell us online, you can call us on the telephone number relating to your affected benefit,” Centrelink said.
Before recipients leave Australia, they must declare their income on the last working day before departure overseas, even if the day on which they declare their income falls on or after their departure from Australia.
They must also inform the government if they travel abroad to visit their partner while receiving benefits as a single person.
“If you go abroad to visit your partner … we need to check your payment before you leave, otherwise we may overpay you,” the agency said.
If Centrelink attempts to contact a beneficiary while they are overseas and is unable to do so, the debit or discount card may be blocked and cannot be reinstated until the client returns to Australia.
There were a whopping 11,268,048 congestion reports, up from 6,997,300 in the previous 12 months, on Centrelink’s social security and welfare lines. A queue at a Centrelink office is pictured
People who receive Centrelink benefits and are going abroad have been warned to inform the government of their plans. A queue at a Centrelink office is pictured
If you are going overseas for less than a year, qualifying payments will continue as usual every two weeks, provided Centrelink is aware of the person’s plans.
If you stay abroad for more than one year, payment will be made every four weeks.
These monthly payments can be deposited into an overseas bank account in the local currency or in US dollars, depending on where the person is traveling.
If a serious problem, such as illness or a natural disaster, prevents travel home to Australia, payments may be extended. The client must contact Centrelink International Services.