A third of bushfire funds are unclaimed

Six months after Black Saturday more than a third of the money allocated to
Victorian fire victims remains unclaimed.
And millions more are tied up in red tape as a tax technicality blocks survivors of
the February 7 disaster accessing money pledged by generous donors.
A progress report released on Friday shows $94 million remains unclaimed out of $266
million made available so far.
A further $51 million has been allocated but has yet to be released because of tax
laws that prevent businesses receiving charity.
The glitch means Victorians who lost holiday homes have been left empty-handed,
together with farmers who lost property and business operators.
Federal Assistant Treasurer Nick Sherry said the laws needed to be amended to free
up the money and he was confident the matter would be resolved by the end of next
week.
Meanwhile, hundreds of survivors who are entitled to payments are too proud or
traumatised to accept help.
Elisabeth Tuckey from the bushfires appeal fund said of the 3,000 properties
destroyed, only about 1,200 applications had been received.
She said some people were insured and did not want charity, others did not consider
themselves deserving and some were too traumatised to apply.
"One of the messages we're trying to get out today is the money's there, it's there
waiting for you to take it," Ms Tuckey told AAP.
In total, $317 million has been allocated from the fund across 22 areas of need,
ranging from rehousing and bereavement to injury and counselling assistance.
There have been 15,180 payments made so far.
The appeal fund, administered by the Victorian government and the Red Cross, has
raised $382 million, including $3 million in interest.
The report by the fund's advisory panel said the money was allocated across areas of
need based on broad estimates to make sure no one missed out.
"Estimates usually assume a 100 per cent take-up rate," the report said.
"This is done to ensure money is available for every person eligible."
If there is more money than needed, the balance will be reallocated to other
bushfire causes.
More than half of the payments made so far were for home dislocation, rehousing and
recovery.
The money has been distributed across 78 bushfire-affected regions.
Kinglake leads the demand for handouts, receiving $45.3 million, followed by
Marysville ($20.5 million), Flowerdale ($17.7 million), and Callignee ($12.1
million).
The remaining donations will be directed toward larger community rebuilding projects.
On Friday the government started its recruitment drive for seasonal firefighters for
next summer.
Some 700 will be on the ground earlier and in larger numbers this year as Victoria
prepares for another torrid fire season.
They will join more than 2,700 permanent firefighters and about 60,000 volunteers.
"Our major task is to make sure that we never see a repeat of February 7th,"
Victorian Premier John Brumby said.
"And the best way to ensure that wish comes true is to make sure that we make our
state as fire safe as possible."