IB TO ESA Support Group. Smooth Transition but I will be paid more. Advice pls.

vanilla_twist

I had my Atos assessment on 20th feb and letter today dated 5th march saying I am being put in support group. No problem there all as expected.
The concern I have is that my money has gone up by just over £19 a fortnight. Very nice, happy with that too but surely if I had been assessed a couple of years ago my money would have gone up sooner.
I phoned the DWP but lady I spoke to (who had no real idea) said there would be a law to say I could not have this money back paid.
She said obviously my condition had changed for the worse as I was in support group.
I have had an Open sick note since around 2003 so that is not the case.

In my view, were the most vulnerable people left for the last assessments so the government did not have to pay them the ESA rate they were entitled to? Those worse off on ESA have their rates protected. Is there protection for those underpaid for so long?


I have trawled the web but am unable to find out what happens to those better off on ESA so am presuming it is a rare thing.

All help, advice and experiences welcome.

Sorry but advice only about those now better off on ESA and if they managed to claim underpayments back please.
V x

lukieboy96

I don't think you can get it backdated. If your condition changed then I think they will say you should have filled in a change of circumstances form.

vanilla_twist

I would like to add that if my ESA allowance had been less than my IB rate then I would have carried on getting my higher IB rate.
My ESA rate is HIGHER than my IB so I believe I have been underpaid all this time.
V x

vanilla_twist

lukieboy96 wrote: »

I don't think you can get it backdated. If your condition changed then I think they will say you should have filled in a change of circumstances form.

My condition has not changed and I filled in the form they sent me every year stating my condition. The only thing that has changed is my migration from IB to ESA. I would have been better off if my migration had been done earlier.
Has the government left people like me until last to save paying out the extra money?
V x

tomtontom

No, 'people like you' have not been left until last for this reason, indeed many are still being placed in the WRAG or failed. You have no right to backdating as you were not entitled to the higher amount until you were assessed. Had you wished to, you could have closed your IB claim and made a claim for ESA at an earlier date.

vanilla_twist

tomtontom wrote: »

No, 'people like you' have not been left until last for this reason, indeed many are still being placed in the WRAG or failed. You have no right to backdating as you were not entitled to the higher amount until you were assessed. Had you wished to, you could have closed your IB claim and made a claim for ESA at an earlier date.

I had no need to close my IB claim and apply for ESA. I certainly did not know nor was made aware I would get a higher rate from ESA.

I am most aware that people are still being place in the WRAG or failed catagories.

Should I have been made aware of the financial benefits of closing my IB claim and claiming ESA instead?
V x

Mr_Lawnmower

Under The Employment and Support Allowance (Transitional Provisions, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit) (Existing Awards) (No. 2) Regulations 2010 (SI 2010/1907) regulation 4(1), DWP have the power to set the date someone on a legacy benefit starts the migration process to ESA at their sole discretion. Regulation 13 says that a conversion decision has effect only once made.

There is no claimable underpayment here.

Mr_Lawnmower

If you closed your existing IB claim and claimed ESA instead, you would not have had sufficiently recent NI contributions for Contributions Based ESA as a new claimant. You would only have been entitled to the means tested Income Related ESA, which might have left you worse off.

DWP are not required to advise existing claimants on possible routes to more money.

nannytone_2

you could have ended your incapacity benefit claim at any time and chosen to claim ESA instead, but you didnt.

the payments will not be backdated past the date that you were transferred to ESA.

would you have been complaining if you were placed in the WRAG and continued to receive MORE benefit than onther who only ever claimed ESA?
if course not .......

vanilla_twist

Mr_Lawnmower wrote: »

Under The Employment and Support Allowance (Transitional Provisions, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit) (Existing Awards) (No. 2) Regulations 2010 (SI 2010/1907) regulation 4(1), DWP have the power to set the date someone on a legacy benefit starts the migration process to ESA at their sole discretion. Regulation 13 says that a conversion decision has effect only once made.

There is no claimable underpayment here.

Mr_Lawnmower wrote: »

If you closed your existing IB claim and claimed ESA instead, you would not have had sufficiently recent NI contributions for Contributions Based ESA as a new claimant. You would only have been entitled to the means tested Income Related ESA, which might have left you worse off.

DWP are not required to advise existing claimants on possible routes to more money.

Thank you for both your replies as very informative.
The legislation quoted was exactly what I was looking for.

It was a long time waiting for the transitional assessment but was dealt with very speedily by the departments concerned.

I would never have closed my IB claim as the continuity was important. I welcome the extra money from my ESA transition I just could not find anywhere online where someone had been given an increase and wanted to make sure it was correct.

V x

vanilla_twist

nannytone wrote: »

you could have ended your incapacity benefit claim at any time and chosen to claim ESA instead, but you didnt.

the payments will not be backdated past the date that you were transferred to ESA.

would you have been complaining if you were placed in the WRAG and continued to receive MORE benefit than onther who only ever claimed ESA?
if course not .......

I now understand the payment raise is from the date of transition. I had never come accross someone getting more money only less.
If my IB rate had been higher it would have been protected until it came back down in line with current payments.

As discussed above closing and IB claim and claiming esa would not have been the right thing to do.

This is not a discussion about wrag or failure. I was asking people who were in support group if their rate had gone up.
Plenty of other threads to discuss wrag and atos.

I would like to keep this thread open a while longer as would really like to know if someone else has had my experience.

Mr Lawnmower has answered my question and backed it up with the evidence I was looking for.

btw the increase will be from 5 weeks after medical and 3 weeks from decision. This in itself seems strange.
V x