P.I.P. timescales...

serendipity2706

Indie_Kid wrote: »

It may be worth phoning up and asking if the appointment is still going ahead.

Phoned at 2.30. Told there was nothing on my file saying anyone had tried to contact me, so to go to the appt. Got there in good time and waited 30 mins then was told appt had been cancelled. I pointed out I had phoned earlier and had not been contacted by anyone to tell me this. Girl said 'Yeah, people having been coming along all day...' You would have thought someone would have had the sense to have phoned ATOS and checked that the cancellation phone calls had been done. Went home, phoned ATOS and was told there was nothing showing on my account about any cancellation!!! Have another appt for 3 weeks time... 3rd time lucky (perhaps)
Have asked for a complaint form though now

Horace

Flippin' heck - the DWP/Capita have come back to me with a decision, I only saw them on 5 Feb. I have been declined but I am being allowed to appeal and appeal I shall.

925dancer

Horace wrote: »

Flippin' heck - the DWP/Capita have come back to me with a decision, I only saw them on 5 Feb. I have been declined but I am being allowed to appeal and appeal I shall.

That was fast! However, you can't appeal straight away, you have to ask for a mandatory reconsideration first, within 30 days of your decision. Something I am currently in the midst of doing myself!

Horace

Thanks - they did say they would contact me after 3 March to discuss their decision. On looking through - no mention has been made of my mobility, I have no depth of field so trip over all the time and I had to get some eye shields to wear over my specs - I was tested for these. I cannot go out at night because I cannot see so I fall over more and walk into things - I am having long cane training which will help.

My DEA as well as Action for Blind People have all said that I should get it.

The chap asking the questions at the assessment did not ask me about my mobility at all.

serendipity2706

Horace wrote: »

Thanks - they did say they would contact me after 3 March to discuss their decision.
The chap asking the questions at the assessment did not ask me about my mobility at all.

I have my third attempt at getting an assessment coming up. It was suggested I write notes of everything I wanted to bring up. It might be an idea if you did this before you have your discussion with them. I sometimes have problems concentrating and go off at tangents, so this is probably a good idea.

925dancer

Horace wrote: »

Thanks - they did say they would contact me after 3 March to discuss their decision. On looking through - no mention has been made of my mobility, I have no depth of field so trip over all the time and I had to get some eye shields to wear over my specs - I was tested for these. I cannot go out at night because I cannot see so I fall over more and walk into things - I am having long cane training which will help.

My DEA as well as Action for Blind People have all said that I should get it.

The chap asking the questions at the assessment did not ask me about my mobility at all.

Did you send evidence?

My assessment was similarly patchy, I'm getting a thorough report from my GP, I took the descriptors into her and we went through them, I should have enhanced rate for both care and mobility but in all honesty I'll just be happy with standard care so it passports me to higher housing benefit so I can keep my flat.

It would seem PIP assessments are as hit and miss as those for ESA.

Fingers crossed for us both!

Horace

I did send evidence - I had a lengthy report from my consultant and a further letter to my GP following a hospital appointment because I had been sent a copy.

It is a good idea as you suggest Dancer to write things down - I wasn't well when I had my assessment plus the chap interviewing me kept talking about his own eye condition plus he couldn't touch type as was virtually typing with 2 fingers so he was slow. He frustrated me because I knew that I could have typed everything onto his screen far quicker and more accurately than he could.

Good Luck

Morglin

The BBC have picked up on the delays:


"Disabled people are facing "distress and financial difficulties" owing to the slow processing of claims under a new benefit scheme, a report has found.

Claimants for the new Personal Independence Payment (PIP) were having to wait weeks longer than anticipated, the National Audit Office (NAO) said.

Backlogs of thousands of cases had built up in trial areas due to delays in assessment by private firms.

Ministers said the scheme's rollout had been "adjusted" in light of lessons.

PIPs, which are worth between £21 and £134 a week to disabled claimants, are replacing the old disability living allowance (DLA) - one of a number of major welfare changes introduced by the government aimed at reducing the benefits bill and encouraging self-reliance and work incentives.

The government insists the new benefit will be better targeted at those in the greatest need.

But the spending watchdog said poor operational performance in the first phase of implementation had made the government stagger the programme's full national rollout - intended to begin last October - while also increasing the risk that it would not deliver value for money in the long term.

It found claimants were waiting an average of 107 days, and terminally-ill patients 28 days, for a decision on their cases - rather than the predicted processing times of 74 days and 10 days respectively.
'Poor performance'


Within months after the first pilots for new claimants were launched in the north of England last April, a backlog of 92,000 cases had built up in some areas with private contractors Atos and Capita.

The Department of Work and Pensions had made decisions in only 16% of the expected number of cases, the report said.

It also suggested each new PIP claim costed an average of £182 to administer, compared with £49 under DLA.

Amyas Morse, head of the NAO, said all major programmes ran the risk of initial teething problems and it was too early to judge whether PIPs would eventually prove a success.

But he added: "The department did not allow enough time to test whether the assessment process could handle large numbers of claims.

"As a result of this poor early operational performance, claimants face long and uncertain delays and the department has had to delay the wider rollout of the programme.

"Because it may take some time to resolve the delays, the department has increased the risk that the programme will not deliver value for money in the longer term."
Risk 'reduced'
Labour MP Margaret Hodge, who chairs the Commons Public Accounts Committee, said the reported delays were "unacceptable" and must be addressed.

"Without the Department for Work and Pensions sharing details of how long claims should and do take, claimants are left facing uncertainty and potential financial difficulties whilst waiting for a decision," she said.

"The department need to understand the causes of this backlog to develop a clear plan on how they are going to work with contractors to clear it, and ensure there are suitable processes in place to make sure this does not happen again."

The Royal National Institute of Blind People said it was "alarmed" that some people were being left without vital help.

""The process must be urgently improved," said Steve Winyard, its head of campaigns and policy.

The DWP, which expects to assess 3.6 million claims by 2018, said the previous system had been "broken" and needed reform.

"Personal Independence Payment is a principled reform which will ensure support is focused on those with the greatest need," a spokesman said.

"It includes a new face-to-face assessment and regular reviews, something missing under the old system.

"The NAO acknowledges this reform started on time and on budget, and we have reduced risk by rolling it out in phases.

"This has enabled us to adjust our plans as we learn from the initial phases, well before the rollout to the majority of existing disability living allowance claimants next year."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-26356623

Lin :whistle:

far1034

My mother has been waiting since 5th Sep 2013 for her claim to be processed and to recieve an assessment date. To date she has not heard anything, despite chasing them several times. This is way longer than the average 107 days quoted above. My mother has spondylosis, is unable to walk more than 10m and is desparately in need of help.

serendipity2706

far1034 wrote: »

My mother has been waiting since 5th Sep 2013 for her claim to be processed and to recieve an assessment date.

I applied in September too. I phoned every day to see if there was a cancellation, and got one on the 4th phone call- a squeaky hinge and all that!
Also, look to see where else she could travel to for an appointment (they pay travel expenses) as some areas have shorter delays.
Although I got an appointment, two of them have been cancelled on the day, so don't get too excited. I have my third attempt in March...
Good luck