Esa assessment call

spoog

Hi,

I have been on Esa under Support group since the beginning of the year, and recently had to send in a new esa50 and subsequently have had my 2nd wca assessment.

That went really well compared to my first one, in regards to the assessor at least (i don't have a result yet).

I got a call last week from dwp asking me if i was free next week on a certain day to receive a call from someone , as they have the result of my assessment now.

Is there a usual reason they call to notify you of a future call being made? I have read that they sometimes call to ask further questions before making a decision or simply to say you passed or failed your wca and then inform you subsequently of what will happen either way. But seems a lot of messing around telling you they have a decision and will tell you from someone else!

Last time I never received a call and just found out by letter that i was put in support group. Is a little nerve wracking - my problems are heart related, and i am awaiting a heart related operation which i am still waiting to hear about from my hospital/cardiologist, so worry/stress isn't helpful!

I know i could just wait until the call and i will find out - but was thinking id post here to see what opinions were given. Thanks for reading either way!

epitome

I believe they tell everyone to expect a call "next week"
and everyone is told of the decision by phone whether it be, Fail, WRAG or SG decision.

i.e. you can't assume anything just because you have been told to expect a call.

What you can do, is phone ESA Enquiries and ask for a copy of your recent WCA report to be sent to you. They are not able to tell you what the upcoming decison is likely to be because the decision is not made until the decision maker has spoken to you (or you happen not to answer the phone when they call, or they happen not to bother calling you). The only exception is when you have not had a face to face assessment, and your WCA report has been written solely on the evidence supplied, in this scenario you know you cannot fail the assessment and it will either be WRAG or SG.

Alice_Holt

I'm afraid this may not be good news.

Decision makers are expected to call you if they are intending to find you capable of work, to ensure that they have all the evidence. You may need to prepare yourself for the call. Go back to your ESa form....why were you placed in the SG.....has your condition (and ability to perform the relevant ESa activities changed)....would your health be at significant risk if found fit for work / work related activity.....etc

So, for instance, if you listed health professionals on your ESa 50 form but you have not been able to get evidence from them yourself, then ask the decision maker if they have contacted them. If not, you could tell the decision maker that you will be asking why they weren't contacted in your appeal.

Take notes of the call (and consider recording it if you can). You can also check with the decision maker if the call is being recorded and ask for a copy of that recording. You can ask for a copy of any notes made by the decision maker. This may be useful evidence for your subsequent mandatory reconsideration and your appeal if the decision does go against you.

spoog

epitome wrote: »

I believe they tell everyone to expect a call "next week"
and everyone is told of the decision by phone whether it be, Fail, WRAG or SG decision.

I see. Well as i say, after my first assessment I had and was put into support group, i never received a phone call - which is one reason why I wasn't sure what to expect with this one.

All i had to go on was any bits i found online, but as you say it appears the reason could be any really. But thought i'd ask incase there was a known specific reason they do it or something.

Thanks for replying anyhow. Appreciated.

spoog

Alice_Holt wrote: »

I'm afraid this may not be good news.

well, as i say, i have read mixed info on why they call, and seems it could be any result - although 'not good news' tends to stand out more than good news or otherwise. Although sometimes they call to give good news, and sometimes they want to clarify something before making the decision.

My situation has worsened in regards to my health in general - as i say im awaiting an operation with the hospital - the assessor took all this down and had evidence for it also. They also told me they had actually contacted my 'doctor' (not sure who they were referring to.. my gp or cardiologist i dunno), and got some basic info from them.

I'm prepared for whatever it is they tell me, or want to ask me to help make a decision should that be the reason for it.

epitome

Decision Maker calls will never be recorded. I will try and find out the DWP procedure on DAC calls...here is something
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/70123/wca-review-2012.pdf

See page 18, has Decision Assurance Calls (DAC) info
Page 19 has a flow chart that shows a call is made whether it is a pass or a fail
Page 21 has bit on DAC
Also a bit bottom of page 25 on DAC

spoog

Im guessing this will be a decision maker call? Due to them giving me a time that 'someone will call'. But they never actually said who it was, just that someone will call. Though I'm guessing its a DM ?

epitome

Oh I thought you already knew that, sorry, yes, it will be the DAC call. It will be the Decision Maker.

spoog

Will give that a look. Yeah sorry, I wasn't told who was going to be calling me - just that 'someone will be calling you between 8.30 and lunchtime to tell you the decision' etc. So I was thinking it would be the DM, but just wasn't sure as I never had a phone call last time when I was waiting for the result.

Thanks for the replies and advice anyhow.

spoog

Just to add after a quick look at that link.

Very interesting pdf.. seems to imply as you say, that it could really go either way when they call - claim successful , not successful, further questioning to see if theres anything to add that might change their mind.

Guess its a wait and see really , reading those sections.