From ESA to JSA

betterlatethannever

Hi
I've been on ESA SG since being diagnosed with cancer in Dec 2010.
I've been through one esa medical, last August, and continued in the sg.
I'm now due another medical on Tuesday and had planned on going along to let them know i'm much better now and able to look for work.:j

Looking at posts on here, it seems thats not what i have to do. Is this correct? Can i just phone and cancel appointment then call the JSA line and sign on? Will i be considered to have had break in my claim if i do this?

I'd much rather not attend the (not needed) medical as its a long journey and wasting everyone's time.
Thanks for any help

epitome

You phone the ESA BC tel number and tell them you want your claim to end....

What was your fortnightly pay day when were you last paid?

You can phone on Monday and say
"I want today (monday) to be my last paid day of ESA, "I want to claim JSA starting tomorrow = Tuesday"


Then you phone 08000556688 on Tuesday and claim JSA from Tuesday.

betterlatethannever

Hi Epitome and thanks.
The last time i received my money was yesterday.

Edit: do i have to have the three days waiting time between claims?

missapril75

betterlatethannever wrote: »

Hi Epitome and thanks.
The last time i received my money was yesterday.

Edit: do i have to have the three days waiting time between claims?

Not on linking claims.

epitome

Yeah, best thing to do then will be to claim JSA on Tuesday having called to close your ESA on Monday - ESA closed from Tuesday with Monday as the last paid day of ESA.

After closing your claim you could if you want phone ATOS to tell them you just closed your claim and will not be attending the assessment. I forgot the ATOS number 0800 something...

The best thing to have done would have been to phone on Friday morning yesterday and closed your ESA claim from Saturday, and then phoned JSA new claims Friday afternoon to claim advanced from Saturday.

But now you have missed the weekend advanced claim possibility it's best to do it on mon/tues, which will mean a small final payment of ESA.

You do realise that JSA will pay you £35 less per week

How much does ESA pay you a fortnight?

You could stay on ESA and look for work, and you could do permitted work whilst on ESA, you could ask to have voluntary WFI on ESA to help you look for work.

rogerblack

If you can obtain work, then doing this directly from ESA will mean that you can get 'back to work' benefits.
So, it'd be best if you could do it before your ESA is cancelled.
This would let you perhaps work in a not-ideal job that may be easier for you while you complete your recovery.

In addition - if you are still recovering from chemotherapy, you may still be eligible for the support group.

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/moneytaxandbenefits/benefitstaxcreditsandothersupport/employedorlookingforwork/dg_10013908

betterlatethannever

Thanks for the help.
I can see where your coming from with regards to staying on ESA, but i'm physically and mentally well now.
I didn't have to have any chemo, just two ops and radiotherapy. My main problem was the medication i had to take to stop the cancer coming back. I had major problems with it, but have now been taken off the meds.

Yes Epitome, i realise the money is less (been on around £239 per fortnight on ESA) but i 'need' to get back into the workforce, i 'need' to feel useful and i 'need' to embrace the fact that i'm well again and have survived this.:) i know i couldn't pass (or fail, depending on how you look at it) the medical, and am not prepared to put myself through the stress
Many thanks for your advice and the phone numbers etc. Really, really helpful:beer: