Who's job is it?

Indie_Kid

I'm failing to understand the issue. You can't complain, imo, if you don't complete the form properly. As tomtom said, if you are that severely disabled, wouldn't you have a carer to fill in the form for you?

Before my DLA tribunal, they wrote to me. They wanted permission to write to a consultant of mine (who has since discharged me) becuse they feel they needed more information from him about my situation. I am led to believe this isn't the norm.

Appointment letters mean very little. All my appointment letters (not for scans) have said is "you have an appointment with Dr x on <date> with <department>. Please bring details of any medication you currently take". What exactly does that prove? There are a few which have been tests which tell me (I can't do this anyway) I can't drive because the tests involve eye drops.

rogerblack

benniebert wrote: »

The Tribunal was given the evidence before we went in. The claimant was questioned about his problems and difficulties. The Tribunal refused to accept what he had said as, in their words, they couldn't find any consistency in what the claimant had said as there was nothing written on the claim form to compare it to.

The tribunal has the power to take the whole of the evidence, and make an award. They are specifically not there to look at only if the original decision was correct on the facts available to the decision-maker at the time.

If they entirely ignored the other evidence - without any semblance of a reason, and without investigating if that evidence was irrelevant - then this may be an error of law, and appealable.
(request a statement of reasons if this was within the last month - if not, you're too late).

Note that 'We don't believe the claimant' may be a valid reason.
But - if they have purely made the decision only on the data available to the DM at the time, and not explained why they've ignored the evidence supplied on the day and orally - this is likely a clear error of law, and could lead to an appeal to the upper tribunal.

benniebert

rogerblack wrote: »

The tribunal has the power to take the whole of the evidence, and make an award. They are specifically not there to look at only if the original decision was correct on the facts available to the decision-maker at the time.

If they entirely ignored the other evidence - without any semblance of a reason, and without investigating if that evidence was irrelevant - then this may be an error of law, and appealable.
(request a statement of reasons if this was within the last month - if not, you're too late).

Note that 'We don't believe the claimant' may be a valid reason.
But - if they have purely made the decision only on the data available to the DM at the time, and not explained why they've ignored the evidence supplied on the day and orally - this is likely a clear error of law, and could lead to an appeal to the upper tribunal.

Thanks for the insight into what is, a very difficult subject to understand.
Being there on the day, I certainly came away with the feeling that the Tribunal used the claim form as a reason not to make an award. They appeared to me to be very biased and insinuated not in so many words that my friend couldn't expect anything else if you go round not filling in the form properly.


It was quite a while ago, so too late I am afraid for an appeal.


As it wasn't me that was in the 'dock' so to speak, I didn't have the right of audience. If it had of been I would have made my feelings pretty clear during the hearing. It was as though they were trying to show that they were just going through the motions.