German social insurance pays most benefits only when someone applies. The Social Code says so for health, pension, unemployment and long-term care insurance: benefits werden auf Antrag erbracht, are provided on application. Everyone has a right to advice. But the citizen must first know that a benefit exists, then ask for it.
In 2019 the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) estimated that about 60 percent of older people entitled to basic income support did not claim it. That is about 625,000 households. The institute named shame and lack of knowledge among the reasons.