Groningen city council has written to the families of 5,000 residents with chronic health conditions implying their relatives are dead, according to news agency ANP.

The letter was addressed to the ‘relatives of’ and informed the reader they would be entitled to a council pay-out of €140.

The council was alerted to its error by several of the ‘dead’ residents.

According to local broadcaster Oog.nl, council spokesman Peter Duzink blamed the printer for the mistaken way of addressing the letter. ‘Everything happens automatically,’ he said. ‘But it is a very painful incident and an apology is on its way.’

ANP did not explain why the relatives of the ‘dead’ people were entitled to a council pay-out in the first place.