Aboriginal families affected by the liquidation of funeral insurer Youpla Group (Youpla) – previously the Aboriginal Community Benefit Fund (ACBF) – may apply for financial relief beginning on Wednesday, thanks to an emergency scheme designed to provide urgent relief for affected members who need to pay for funerals as soon as possible.
Minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney and Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones announced that the interim scheme will enable people who held policies with ACBF-Youpla as of April 01, 2020, to receive a payout for funeral expenses equal to the one they were initially promised by the company, as reported by The Guardian.
The interim scheme is open until November 30, 2023. Eligible applicants must provide documents to support their application, with the payments made within two weeks of approval, according to the Save Sorry Business coalition.
Youpla went into liquidation earlier this year, leaving its members in limbo – with Yarrabah, Palm Island, Moree in New South Wales (NSW), Dubbo, and Walgett as the most affected communities.
Since the funeral insurer’s collapse, the Save Sorry Business coalition and other advocates had called for federal government intervention to help thousands of affected Aboriginal families. Now, the coalition has welcomed the scheme, describing it as an essential step towards helping the affected families recover.
“We are glad to see this emergency program open for the many grieving families who have been harmed by the collapse of Youpla. Sorry Business is a fundamental cultural practice that was stolen away and replaced with financial and cultural crisis,” said Lynda Edwards, Wangkumara – Barkandji woman and financial capability coordinator at Financial Counselling Australia, as reported by The Guardian.
“The Save Sorry Business Coalition and many other First Nations advocates continue our deep conversations with Ministers Linda Burney and Stephen Jones to achieve an enduring resolution for the families and communities harmed. No-one should be left behind.”
However, the coalition offered a reminder that continuous support is needed for around 30,000 members affected over the three decades that ACBF-Youpla was allowed to operate.
