Every year, several Swedes are incorrectly registered as deceased by the Tax Authority. It can be a matter of mistakes – or deliberate actions from external individuals. This happened to Jonathan Ravelin at the end of 2023, which he suddenly discovered one day when he logged in to the bank.
It was tough to discover, he says.
No control
The consequences were immediate and far-reaching. Since he, according to the Tax Authority, was dead, he no longer had a functioning bank ID, identification, or passport. It took six weeks before he had full access to his economy again.
I did not expect it to be as tough as it was.
It turned out that someone had submitted a physical form signed by a fictitious doctor. The Tax Authority made no control of the form before registering Jonathan Ravelin as deceased.
Now he has sued the state for the Tax Authority's inadequate handling of his personal data. He wants the district court to impose damages of 20,000 kronor and to establish that the Tax Authority made a mistake.
The main hearing is held on Wednesday in the Stockholm District Court.
Many people contact us and want help with this, says Alexandra Loyd, deputy head of the Center for Justice.
Introduce routines
In the digital system, where about 80 percent of all death reports are registered, security is strong. When it comes to physical forms, "it is in practice zero", according to Loyd.
There was no doctor with this name. They should have been able to check that, she says.
A solution may be that the Tax Authority introduces a routine to check the doctor's name against the National Board of Health and Welfare's register of doctors in Sweden, says Alexandra Loyd.
The legal issue here is whether it was correct to register Jonathan as dead. We mean that it cannot be a correct piece of information that he is dead when he is alive. But the state means that one should look at what is stated on this paper, and that it is correct in relation to that.
The case may have significance not only for incorrect death reports but can also sharpen the requirements for all of Sweden's authorities, according to Alexandra Loyd.
It's about the fact that information that has great significance should be correct. And that we can actually demand from the authorities.
Fact: Dozens incorrectly reported dead every year
TT
In 2021, the Tax Authority incorrectly treated 42 people as deceased in the population register. In 2022, the figure was 46 people and in 2023, 16 people.
Inadequate checks of death certificates submitted as physical forms are one of the reasons for the incorrect registrations, according to the Center for Justice.
Source: Center for Justice
