Incapacity benefit, esa assessment!

Muttleythefrog

bikeit wrote: »

The wife got a 60 page copy of the Appeal Tribunal submission today explaining her whole case history and a cover letter about her appeal and to let her know that someone will be in touch with her to let her know where and when her oral hearing will be,
Anyone please offer any advise as what she should be doing now to strengthen her appeal, this is really affecting her she cannot sleep and finds it hard to eat a meal,

Supporting medical evidence that help her claim particular descriptors apply - send that to tribunals service. Pepare well... understand the descriptors.. know what you want to argue for... have a good read of the evidence in the pack. Be honest, don't underplay problems. You'll find many threads on this board about ESA appeals. In addition watch this video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbWXG6Ho4i8

bikeit

Her own GP already said that she will do all she can to help her with her appeal, and a local politician who helps people like my wife with appeals etc is willing to go to the oral hearing and speak for her,
what do you mean by descriptors.

Muttleythefrog

bikeit wrote: »

Her own GP already said that she will do all she can to help her with her appeal, and a local politician who helps people like my wife with appeals etc is willing to go to the oral hearing and speak for her,
what do you mean by descriptors.

The descriptors are the statements of disability that determine entitlement. THe rules of the game if you like. Your entire focus should be on these and nothing else... and so should those who try to help like GP in providing a written statement. http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/@en/@disabled/documents/digitalasset/dg_177366.pdf the descriptors are at the end for the two ESA groups. But to be honest.. if you've reached this point without looking at them then you've been fighting blind... I hope that isn't the case otherwise appeal made might be seriously deficient unless you got help.

bikeit

The descriptors are score based, right, and you need a combined score of 15 to get the benefit, if that is the case her score was 0.

Muttleythefrog

bikeit wrote: »

The descriptors are score based, right, and you need a combined score of 15 to get the benefit, if that is the case her score was 0.

There are two ESA groups.. WRAG and Support group. The points based test is for WRAG.. you need to score 15 points or more total from the WRAg descriptors to qualify for WRAG. The support group has descriptors too.. and if any apply then it is Support group. Try not to be too put off by the 0 score though... many people win appeals from that position... in fact sometimes I wonder if ATOS medical reports awarding no descriptors attract tribunal panels to the potential the medical report is well wide of reality.

bikeit

Muttleythefrog thanks for your help and patience, you may think i am thick but this is all new to the wife and me and at times most of it goes over our heads.
fingers crossed she is successful with her appeal, i will let you know how she gets on.

Muttleythefrog

bikeit wrote: »

Muttleythefrog thanks for your help and patience, you may think i am thick but this is all new to the wife and me and at times most of it goes over our heads.
fingers crossed she is successful with her appeal, i will let you know how she gets on.

Good luck...and no worries... make sure she watches the video above... it's a bit patronising I think (or maybe just the acting is poor..lol) but it is very specifically about what you face and it hopefully will put mind at some ease. It's also worth noting that failure at appeal tribunal may not be the end of it... it sounds like she'd be supported in making a new ESA claim by her GP... and by the time the appeal is done and dusted the 6 month 'waiting period' to make new application will probably be over... it'll probably be a few months before the appeal actually happens.

bikeit

Update.
The wife got another letter from the appeal tribunal people, she had to fill it in to explain that she was looking for an oral hearing, a lady from the CAB whole deals with these type of appeals is going to go to the hearing with her, she also has to go back to see her own GP who is going to write her a letter to strengthen her case.
Fingers crossed.

julie59

Just reading the threads on here aand I'm scared, my medical assessment failed, I scored 0 last year i had 15 points.
I rung them and they sent me the report, I couldn't believe what the Doctor had written, the lies, To cut thing short I have 4 disc in my back gone, I also have lots of other medical problems, I am on 16 tablets a day, I have had 2 nervious breakdowns. i do not go out alone, and do not like being left alone. i do not like meeting new people as I cannot talk easy to them. If i have to go anywhere I have to sit at the back of the room facing front. This is just the tip of the iceburg. i have been like this for years, but ashamed to admit it. Not all the questions for these problems came up , but most did, yet I scored 0
Now i am on appeal with the help of CAB but am terrified I will have to go in front of people I don't know, How can these people at ATOL not write the truth, I cried most of the time in the interview, yet she put was dressed well and sat for 30 mins in chair, which was a lie.

sorry i'm rambling but am really scared, my doc has given me a medical cert

bikeit

Julie59 you have sympathies,
my wife also could not believe what the doctor at her assessment wrote down about her, she has an appointment next week with an adviser from citizen advise, hope she can work some magic for the wife, to be honest if the wife does not meet the criteria i may have to consider leaving work as my wages alone would not meet our weekly bills, the company i work for have reduced our wages this past two years and i may be better off claiming benefits.