[2021 Muyeongo Report] One in Five Lonely Deaths Are in Their 50s... Not Just an Elderly Issue

<5>The World They Live In

10,757 Unclaimed Deaths in the Past 5 Years
50s Account for 2,411 Cases, 23.27%
Increase Since COVID-19 Outbreak
More Than Triple Increase in Gyeonggi Region Over 5 Years
Deaths in 40s Also Steadily Rising, Serious Concern

[Asia Economy Special Investigation Team = Team Leader Ko Hyung-kwang, Reporters Yoo Byung-don, Jung Dong-hoon, Lee Jung-yoon] Deaths without kin, where individuals pass away alone without any known relatives, are no longer phenomena seen only among the elderly. Among the unclaimed deaths, those in their 50s accounted for one in five, revealing that lonely deaths among middle-aged and older adults are not uncommon.

As a result of a full survey conducted by Asia Economy on the occurrence trends of unclaimed deaths across 229 basic local governments nationwide, the number of unclaimed deaths over the past five years was tallied at 10,757. Excluding 396 deaths for which the year of death or age estimation was impossible, 10,361 were classified by age group: 4,799 (46.31%) were aged 65 and older, 2,411 (23.27%) were in their 50s, and 1,762 (17.01%) were aged 60 to 64. Those in their 40s and under 40 also showed a considerable distribution with 978 (9.44%) and 411 (3.97%) respectively.

A noteworthy point is the proportion of unclaimed deaths among those in their 50s. The number of unclaimed deaths in the 50s age group, which is the age when people typically retire from society, has turned upward. The proportion of unclaimed deaths in their 50s was 23.87% in 2016, peaked at 25.37% in 2017, then declined to 24.57% in 2018 and 21.70% in 2019. However, it slightly rose again to 22.29% last year during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Looking at the regions, except for Sejong, all metropolitan local governments showed a high proportion of unclaimed deaths in their 50s, ranging from 20% to 32%. In Seoul, Gyeonggi, and Busan, where the number of unclaimed deaths exceeded 1,000, the proportions of unclaimed deaths in their 50s were 22.64%, 22.95%, and 24.04%, respectively. In Gwangju, about one-third of the total 95 unclaimed deaths, or 31 people (32.64%), were in their 50s.

During this period, the absolute number of unclaimed deaths in their 50s increased more than twofold: 297 → 395 → 524 → 521 → 674. Especially in the Gyeonggi region, the number of unclaimed deaths in their 50s rose from just 46 in 2016 to 147 in 2020, more than tripling. In Incheon, the number increased from 25 to 61, and in Seoul from 88 to 136 during the same period.

Not only those in their 50s but also unclaimed deaths among people in their 40s and under 40 showed an increasing trend. Although their proportion of total unclaimed deaths has decreased, the absolute number of deaths has steadily risen. Unclaimed deaths among those in their 40s nearly doubled from 134 in 2016 to 262 in 2020, and unclaimed deaths under 40 also surged from 68 to 114 during the same period.

The age group with the highest proportion among all unclaimed deaths remains those aged 60 and above. The proportion of those 65 and older, classified as elderly, was overwhelmingly close to half of the total. Except for Gwangju, Daejeon, and Jeju, all metropolitan local governments showed distributions above 40%, with Busan (49.96%) and Jeonbuk (51.98%) even nearing or exceeding half. Additionally, unclaimed deaths among those aged 60 to 64 accounted for a high proportion of 13% to 21% (excluding Sejong).

Expanding the range to those aged 60 and above, combining the two age groups, it was revealed that more than half of unclaimed deaths occurred in this age group in all regions except Gwangju and Daejeon. This is analyzed as an increase in lonely deaths among the elderly, who are in welfare blind spots such as basic livelihood security recipients, influenced by COVID-19.

※This article was produced with support from the Korea Press Foundation’s government advertising fees.