PIP confusion, advice needed please

itsmeinnit123

Hello

A little background first...I am in my 50's and have been in receipt of DLA "for life" low care for the last 20+ years

A month ago I received the DLA to PIP change letter and requested a home visit for the face to face as I no longer go outside my flat, the last time I went out anywhere was October 2015

The assessment was done on April 21 this year

Today, May 6, I had a letter dated April 29 telling me I had scored zero on all issues and that as of now my claim for DLA/PIP had ceased

I also got a letter from them saying my ESA work limited benefit was dropping by £5 per week??

Anyway, I am confused since I live in an adapted flat, had all of my supports on (back, wrists, knees), was using an elbow crutch, was puffing away on my inhalers as I spoke to the lady and I even made sure that she saw that my bathroom was adapted too when she asked what adaptions/grabrails I had etc

I do not go outside cos I have extreme pain from arthritis and old injuries (ex husband) , I also have become nervous due to IBS that is very unpredictable, I get breathless due to COPD and suffer severe migraines following a stroke in 2007

I am confused as to what I should do as they tell me that cos I eat ready meals in the microwave and talk to a friend daily via Skype (he lives in Belgium) I am not eligible for PIP or DLA

I am due a DLA payment on May 8 and am depending on that for a bill payment but I assume now it will not be paid?????

This has pulled the rug out from under me, I would go to the CAB but I can't go outside.....I live alone and have no family (they are dead)

Can someone please tell me the way I need to put this right cos its very upsetting and confusing

Thank you in advance

tensandunits_2

I can't think for the life of me why they've given you zero points, given your medical problems. The first thing to do would be to appeal the decision, which will I think give you 4 weeks more DLA while they look at the decision again. Also ask to see a copy of the report the assessor wrote.

antrobus

itsmeinnit123 wrote: »

...Can someone please tell me the way I need to put this right cos its very upsetting and confusing
..

You have to request a mandatory reconsideration...
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/sick-or-disabled-people-and-carers/pip/appeals/mandatory-reconsideration/

... and then (probably) appeal to a tribunal.

The real question would be what you put down on your PIP2 form and work out where you think you should have gained points.

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/Global/Migrated_Documents/adviceguide/pip-9-table-of-activities-descriptors-and-points.pdf

pmlindyloo

The first thing is that you will get 4 weeks more of your DLA payment after the date of your PIP decision.

I am also wondering why you receive 0 points when you have aids (at the very least)

Did you send any medical evidence with your PIP form? Despite their saying they will contact your doctor they rarely do.

Yo have one month from the date of your decision to do a reconsideration - the first part of your appeal.

You can telephone them and tell them that you are going to appeal.

Then you are probably going to need some help with your appeal. CAB may have people who will visit you or try AGEUK

http://www.ageuk.org.uk/no-one/we-provide-advice/

Did you receive help from anyone for your PIP application or did you do it yourself?

If you have no medical evidence then you need to ask your doctor to visit and ask for any letters from medical professionals or ask the doctor to write a letter outlining your medical problems.

But remember there is a time limit so you only have one month from the decision date to start your appeal. (This can be extended if you need more time to get help from a welfare adviser)

Alice_Holt

You need to appeal this decision.
This is a pro-forma for the first stage of the appeal.
https://www.leicester.gov.uk/media/178163/mandatory-reconsideration-request.pdf
You are asking the DWP to look at their decision again.
It needs to be completed within 1 month of the decision letter date.

It is rare for the DWP to change the decision at MR stage. So when you get the response from the DWP to your MR, it's likely you will need to continue the appeal to the tribunal service. Here is the form for this:
https://formfinder.hmctsformfinder.justice.gov.uk/sscs001-eng.pdf
You need to attach the MRN note from the DWP, and have one month from the MR decision notice to send this form to the tribunal service.

Here are some guides / info which you may find useful:
http://www.advicenow.org.uk/guides/how-win-pip-appeal
http://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/personal-independence-payment-pip/pip-appeals
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/sick-or-disabled-people-and-carers/pip/appeals/your-hearing/

Info on PIP points, and how they should be interpreted:
http://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/personal-independence-payment-pip/pip-points-system
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/547146/pip-assessment-guide.pdf Pages 86 on, and 97-134 are relevant.

It would be worth phoning or emailing your local CAB (expect a longish wait as they are always very busy!). https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/about-us/how-we-provide-advice/advice/
They may be able to offer a home visit or telephone advice.

It would also be worth contacting your local MIND https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/ and seeing if their is an advocacy charity in your area.

Medical evidence is very useful, so see if your GP would support your appeal (the How to win your PIP appeal is useful on this).

Good Luck.

Edit: Written (slowly) whilst the other helpful posts above were being posted - hence the duplication. Some good points and suggestions there!

itsmeinnit123

Thank you for your quick responses

I shall phone them on Monday morning first thing and have them start the appeal proceedings

I hope that they do pay my DLA this Tuesday as its always used for a specific bill and it will cause all sorts of issues if they have stopped the money at such short notice...its a real worry to me now til I physically see it in my bank account

I will also contact the local CAB to arrange a home visit to help me get this mess sorted out cos DWP have medical evidence equivalent to half a dozen copies of War & Peace that back up my claim for PIP

The speed of the decision concerns me, just 8 days from assessment to refusal and then taking 7 days for the refusal letter to reach me...I do not understand that at all and have to question if they really read the assessment report properly....the lady who did it was very nice, she helped me up off the bed (I cannot use my sofa as too low, so had the bed moved into the lounge and am living in one room, the bed height is very high....the brace used on one knee is a straight leg one, the knee cannot be bent, so the high bed is the only thing I can use to sit on comfortably and get onto and off of without too much struggle). My bathroom is a mass of grabrails, I have a shower bench etc.....

I just feel that they did not read anything they were given and just gave a sweep of the proverbial red pen....

rockingbilly

itsmeinnit123 wrote: »

Hello

A little background first...I am in my 50's and have been in receipt of DLA "for life" low care for the last 20+ years

A month ago I received the DLA to PIP change letter and requested a home visit for the face to face as I no longer go outside my flat, the last time I went out anywhere was October 2015

The assessment was done on April 21 this year

Today, May 6, I had a letter dated April 29 telling me I had scored zero on all issues and that as of now my claim for DLA/PIP had ceased

I also got a letter from them saying my ESA work limited benefit was dropping by £5 per week??

Anyway, I am confused since I live in an adapted flat, had all of my supports on (back, wrists, knees), was using an elbow crutch, was puffing away on my inhalers as I spoke to the lady and I even made sure that she saw that my bathroom was adapted too when she asked what adaptions/grabrails I had etc

I do not go outside cos I have extreme pain from arthritis and old injuries (ex husband) , I also have become nervous due to IBS that is very unpredictable, I get breathless due to COPD and suffer severe migraines following a stroke in 2007

I am confused as to what I should do as they tell me that cos I eat ready meals in the microwave and talk to a friend daily via Skype (he lives in Belgium) I am not eligible for PIP or DLA

I am due a DLA payment on May 8 and am depending on that for a bill payment but I assume now it will not be paid?????

This has pulled the rug out from under me, I would go to the CAB but I can't go outside.....I live alone and have no family (they are dead)

Can someone please tell me the way I need to put this right cos its very upsetting and confusing

Thank you in advance

Join the club. I'm 68 and had DLA high Mobility & Middle Care indefinitely.
On my transfer earlier this year I too received 0 points. I was never given a F2F - they made the decision based on the claim form only.

itsmeinnit123

rockingbilly wrote: »

Join the club. I'm 68 and had DLA high Mobility & Middle Care indefinitely.
On my transfer earlier this year I too received 0 points. I was never given a F2F - they made the decision based on the claim form only.

Were you able to overturn their decision?

pmlindyloo

itsmeinnit123 wrote: »

Were you able to overturn their decision?

If you click on rockingbilly's name you will be able to see his posting history.

This will give you a lot of information about his history as regards his claims for DLA/PIP/AA.

It needs to be stressed that rockingbilly is extremely negative about his situation and only gives his opinion about the system.

This can be very worrying for posters so I would respectfully suggest that you follow the advice of people who have a history of helping people, providing support and information relating to your particular case.

tensandunits_2

Also, no awards would be made 'indefinitely', I don't think. Certainly not DLA, which I think got renewed every couple of years or so.

Alice_Holt

pmlindyloo wrote: »

If you click on rockingbilly's name you will be able to see his posting history.

This will give you a lot of information about his history as regards his claims for DLA/PIP/AA.

It needs to be stressed that rockingbilly is extremely negative about his situation and only gives his opinion about the system.

This can be very worrying for posters so I would respectfully suggest that you follow the advice of people who have a history of helping people, providing support and information relating to your particular case.

Absolutely.

If the OP wants to establish the credibility (or otherwise) of RB's anecdotes, I suggest s/he looks at:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5617003 and
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5626671

They are quite entertaining reading, but the more serious point is the reaction FB gets from fellow forumites. This should indicate to the OP the reputation RB has on this site.
S/he can then decide how seriously to take his posts.
If RB persists in derailing her thread, I would strongly suggest the OP (and others) report RB's worrying posts.