confusing esa letter...

deathvalleydemon

Muttleythefrog wrote: »

Sadly their admin and ability to give information can be beyond belief in its lack or error. Then once in a while you get contact with someone who is really switched on and fills in all the missing gaps and misunderstandings and sounds convincing enough to make you believe they actually are giving meaningful facts. Try not to worry... I still think in all probability you have been put onto the main phase of ESA and that they're communicating this extremely poorly in written form and on phone... not least because none of them have indicated the crucial piece of information that is which group in the main phase. When they communicate that or your money changes in accordance then you can rest. I'm confident they were right on the phone... just woefully inadequate.

Regarding the letter. It looks like a badly constructed one that attempts to get around the possibility the computerised system is inadequate to address the circumstances... to be blunt it was probably written by someone who is barely literate, low paid and low skilled. I think you have to just try getting this out your mind until next week... as I always say... if you claim ESA and are not ill.... then by the time the DWP have finished with your claim you will be.

i guess all i can do is ring them on monday, but like ive said a few times, the ONLY decision that they could have reconsidered is the medical i failed last october, its the only appeal for esa i have going.


when i call i want them to tell me on the phone what the hell is going on, but the guy i spoke to on friday said that " you should hear from us in the next couple of days with what happens next"....

deathvalleydemon

just spoke to them, and they said the letter has been sent in error.

im so furious. they have absolutely no idea where this letter has come from as it hasnt been sent by them, they said they have absolutely no record of that letter being sent from their office even tho its got their address on it.

3 people from the esa told me that id had the decision changed in my favour even this morning the woman told me so. then they called me back and told me it was an "error".

and they said i still have to go to tribunal.

what a !!!!ing farce!

deathvalleydemon

theyve just gave me another call and said they have made me an appointment at the local jobcentre this afternoon so i can take the letter in. they said they believe ive doctored it myself.

never heard anything like it in my absolute life!

Muttleythefrog

deathvalleydemon wrote: »

theyve just gave me another call and said they have made me an appointment at the local jobcentre this afternoon so i can take the letter in. they said they believe ive doctored it myself.

never heard anything like it in my absolute life!

This is truly shocking. When you get there I'd be inclined to say you want to speak to someone in seniority and make complaint... you've been repeatedly reassured that your WCA decision has been reconsidered in your favour.

If anyone on these threads was in any doubt people's lives are badly impacted by totally unbelievable DWP ESA administration then hopefully this thread will finally convince them.

I really don't know what to say other than complain and complain... when they don't even believe their own communications and compeltely misinterpret them then what can you do other than assume every communication regarding ESA may be completely baseless, misleading or untrue.

deathvalleydemon

Muttleythefrog wrote: »

This is truly shocking. When you get there I'd be inclined to say you want to speak to someone in seniority and make complaint... you've been repeatedly reassured that your WCA decision has been reconsidered in your favour.

If anyone on these threads was in any doubt people's lives are badly impacted by totally unbelievable DWP ESA administration then hopefully this thread will finally convince them.

I really don't know what to say other than complain and complain... when they don't even believe their own communications and compeltely misinterpret them then what can you do other than assume every communication regarding ESA may be completely baseless, misleading or untrue.

my appointment is this afternoon at 3.40...

im truly devastated, im a 31 year old man and i'll admit ive never felt like crying so much in my life.

i just gave the tribunals a call to see if there was any joy their end and they said that noone from the dwp has contacted them (yet) to say they have reconsidered their decision, also asked about my tribunal date and they said to me " we are still dealing with appeals we received in august 2010, we didnt recieve yours until january 2011 (even tho i sent it in way before that) so they said youre looking at late january/early feb 2012 before you will have a date.

deathvalleydemon

just got back from the appointment and i may as well have had an appointment with spongebob squarepants...

"its an easy mistake for them to have made" the woman said to me...

i told her that i wish to complain in the strongest possible manner.


im still gutted.

Muttleythefrog

deathvalleydemon wrote: »

just got back from the appointment and i may as well have had an appointment with spongebob squarepants...

"its an easy mistake for them to have made" the woman said to me...

i told her that i wish to complain in the strongest possible manner.


im still gutted.

It really is appalling. I'd definitely get MP involved if I had the energy. It is appalling that a letter appears to suggest something then several agents on the phone confirm that suspicion to be the case... then you get accused of making the letter up in effect and that what you've been told is absolutely untrue.

This definitely should not be an easy mistake to make.. it is an absolute disgrace... it's like an HR department turning around to an employee who has been told several times they're getting promoted that actually that was all rubbish.. they're actually being dismissed.... 'an easy mistake to make'.

Definitely complain. It looks like you are set for appeal tribunal and a significant delay for that.

I can only apologise for any false hope I might have raised here. After you got confirmation on the phone that appeal wouldn;t be necessary.. and given the other circumstantial evidence... I was fairly well persuaded. I should've known better... virtually every day I read something regarding ESA administration that leaves me wondering if I'm losing my marbles.

It's a warning to anyone regarding ESA. You cannot trust any communications you receive in relation to this benefit from the DWP. If you get confirmation or reassurances of communications from the DWP that is no guarantee the information has any basis at all.

deathvalleydemon

Muttleythefrog wrote: »

It really is appalling. I'd definitely get MP involved if I had the energy. It is appalling that a letter appears to suggest something then several agents on the phone confirm that suspicion to be the case... then you get accused of making the letter up in effect and that what you've been told is absolutely untrue.

This definitely should not be an easy mistake to make.. it is an absolute disgrace... it's like an HR department turning around to an employer who has been told several times they're getting promoted that actually that was all rubbish.. they're actually being dismissed.... 'an easy mistake to make'.

Definitely complain. It looks like you are set for appeal tribunal and a significant delay for that.

I can only apologise for any false hope I might have raised here. After you got confirmation on the phone that appeal wouldn;t be necessary.. and given the other circumstantial evidence... I was fairly well persuaded. I should've known better... virtually every day I read something regarding ESA administration that leaves me wondering if I'm losing my marbles.

It's a warning to anyone regarding ESA. You cannot trust any communications you receive in relation to this benefit from the DWP. If you get confirmation of communications from the DWP that is no guarantee the information has any basis at all.

exactly, i mean for them to tell me on the phone FOUR separate times by FOUR separate people that the letter is correct is and for them to say what they did to me is highly unacceptable. i will be spending the evening writing my letter of complaint.

you've nothing to be sorry for...

thats another thing thats made me so damn angry about it all.. NOT ONCE have they said sorry to me about the whole mess.

the woman i saw this afternoon said " its quite clearly been copied and pasted wrong and has no place on this letter, i dont think im going to bother sending it to them now, as i appear to have sorted out the matter myself".. she was quite clearly up her own backside.

Muttleythefrog

deathvalleydemon wrote: »

exactly, i mean for them to tell me on the phone FOUR separate times by FOUR separate people that the letter is correct is and for them to say what they did to me is highly unacceptable. i will be spending the evening writing my letter of complaint.

you've nothing to be sorry for...

thats another thing thats made me so damn angry about it all.. NOT ONCE have they said sorry to me about the whole mess.

the woman i saw this afternoon said " its quite clearly been copied and pasted wrong and has no place on this letter, i dont think im going to bother sending it to them now, as i appear to have sorted out the matter myself".. she was quite clearly up her own backside.

There's another thread regarding complaints and apologies recently. Sadly apologies are beyond their mentality it seems. Their attitude is 'well I didn't make the mistake'. There's a gross lack of accountability and I suspect training and reporting structure. They'll blame the computer software which is antique and totally unfit for purpose... and your addition to the comment is in line with what I suspect.. a copy paste ad-hoc effort to create a letter by someone who shouldn't be let loose in an office at all.

In your complaint note down the details.. rough times of your calls and content.. obviously a copy of the letter.. carbon copy to your MP.. and explain how this has all made your health worse and how you've even had to pay them a visit at jobcentre because they disputed the content of the letter... and point out their hideous lack of apparent customer care in response when you were there.

What is perhaps most troubling about all this is that people who presumably had your claim details in front of them and should have case history record were able to consistently give absolutely untrue information about the most fundamantal details of your case. If they don't know... who would... nobody at all presumably?

Good luck.

NASA_2

I've said it before and I will say it again that the computer systems that are used to pay all the main benefits are extremely poor and the letters that are issued rarely make sense.

The people you spoke to on the phone are poorly trained (That part isnt their fault) but they shouldnt have given you any definate answers if they werent sure what they were saying was correct.

ESA were only responsible for the second letter - not the first.