JAPAN TIMES



 

The National Police Agency disclosed a plan Thursday to increase the minimum amount of state benefits paid to bereaved families of crime victims.

Under the plan to revise the benefit system, the minimum amount will be raised from ¥3.2 million to ¥10.6 million in principle. The NPA aims to carry out the revision in June after seeking public comments.

In June last year, the government decided to consider raising benefits for bereaved families substantially as many such people have not received enough compensation from perpetrators.

This year, an expert panel of the NPA recommended on April 16 that the state benefits be increased.

Benefits for bereaved families are calculated based mainly on the income of victims before the incident and their age.

If the victim is a young child, however, the minimum amount the bereaved family will receive is ¥3.2 million. The expert panel said that the amount is not enough.

The panel also said that factors other than the victim's income should also be taken into account in deciding the amounts of benefits as bereaved families tend to become unable to work due to a psychological shock and thus suffer financial damage.

According to the NPA, the amounts of benefits for bereaved families determined in fiscal 2022 averaged ¥7,438,000, far below the average of ¥25.14 million for fiscal 2021 paid for fatal accidents by compulsory automobile liability insurance.

The panel requested that the amounts of benefits for crime victims' families be raised to levels matching those of other public benefits.