Pip assessments

trojan1964

My husbands lasted 13 minutes and the report thereafter was full of fabricational medical facts that meant he scored 0 points.

9 months later and on appeal at Tribunal from 0 points he was awarded 23 points, 14 for daily allowance, 9 for mobility.

Has anyone ever challenged the that the disabled are not being even allowed the right to a fair and proper medical examination which i assume is an absolute right.

For someone not to be awarded a single point after that examination and thereafter be awarded 23 points based on the same evidence, there is something fundamentally wrong and unfair.

Being denied the right to a proper assessment, any thoughts?

NeilCr

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/oct/30/staggering-rise-pip-complaints-rot-system-disability-benefits

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42862904

Top two google searches. A lot more if you have a look

trojan1964

Thanks for that NeilCr

I have issued a against the Secretary of State for Work and Pension which is being dealt with within the High Court in London.

I have predominately done this because of the treatment and the manner in which the disabled in this Country are being treated.

I am claiming exemplary damages against the DWP which i am hoping will deter wave after wave of vulnarable people being targeted.

As you know, some have taking their own lives because of the new reforms, and in particular PIP.

It really needs challenging and the only way to deter these people is the threat of losing a lot of money for their actions.

fil_cad

trojan1964 wrote: »

Thanks for that NeilCr

I have issued a against the Secretary of State for Work and Pension which is being dealt with within the High Court in London.

I have predominately done this because of the treatment and the manner in which the disabled in this Country are being treated.

I am claiming exemplary damages against the DWP which i am hoping will deter wave after wave of vulnarable people being targeted.

As you know, some have taking their own lives because of the new reforms, and in particular PIP.

It really needs challenging and the only way to deter these people is the threat of losing a lot of money for their actions.

Good luck. :money:

eng_muffin

I attempted to claim for PIP, had it denied, went to the tribunal then the upper tribunal, wrote to my MP who passed it along and I'm not sure what happened after that--I think we were waiting for a response from the WP Secretary, or maybe we got fobbed off, I don't remember now. My parents were handling the complaint and once I don't need to remember to do something I stop thinking about it.

Anyway, what my failing to get the benefit boiled down to was, they didn't believe I had any cognitive problems, despite the issues I had at my assessment, the information in my medical letter and all the examples I gave on my form. I.e. they ignored the evidence and just decided I was lying.

They also decided that the medical diet I was supposed to be on, which requires tonnes of organisation and meal prep (far more than a normal diet, and too much for me with my disability to manage alone) didn't count as "treatment", even though it IS the treatment for one of my conditions and being able to go back on it would be better for my brain functions and possibly my overall health as well.

The stupid thing is, I have ESA. It took a while to get initially and I've had a couple of hiccups along the way, but the DWP accept I'm disabled enough to not be able to work. But they fail to recognise the same symptoms make day-to-day living just as difficult. It's such a stupid system and if anyone can get it properly reformed, I wish them luck. I know most people who need benefits don't have financial backup in the form of my parents (without whom I would probably be homeless right now) and it makes me so angry when the pitiful amounts get cut or withdrawn.

GunJack

eng_muffin wrote: »

The stupid thing is, I have ESA. It took a while to get initially and I've had a couple of hiccups along the way, but the DWP accept I'm disabled enough to not be able to work. But they fail to recognise the same symptoms make day-to-day living just as difficult.

This seems to be a very common occurrence these days... inconsistency of the highest order on the part of DWP and it's assessment contractors...

[Deleted User]

GunJack wrote: »

This seems to be a very common occurrence these days... inconsistency of the highest order on the part of DWP and it's assessment contractors...

What inconsistency? PIP and ESA are different benefits with different criteria!

suepatch

I have a PIP review last August and was granted the middle amount . In October I had a loss of balance which resulted in a fall and breaking my knee I was in hospital for 6 weeks I had plates in pins in my knee with bone grafts to repair it and then got sepsis When I got home with my leg in a brace I contacted DWp regarding my current position as I was expected to do as a change in my circumstances I had a review in March whilst still in wheel chair and got the result six weeks later that I would no longer get PIP and because I was over 64 I was not entitled to Mobility to this day I am unable to walk far and have permanent limp This is disgusting . I asked for an appeal and that came back the same no payment

poppy12345

suepatch wrote: »

I have a PIP review last August and was granted the middle amount . In October I had a loss of balance which resulted in a fall and breaking my knee I was in hospital for 6 weeks I had plates in pins in my knee with bone grafts to repair it and then got sepsis When I got home with my leg in a brace I contacted DWp regarding my current position as I was expected to do as a change in my circumstances I had a review in March whilst still in wheel chair and got the result six weeks later that I would no longer get PIP and because I was over 64 I was not entitled to Mobility to this day I am unable to walk far and have permanent limp This is disgusting . I asked for an appeal and that came back the same no payment

There's no middle rate of PIP, it's Standard and Enhanced only.



Reporting a change of circumstances is always risky! What you should have done before reporting those changes is to look at the PIP descriptors to see where you could have scored those extra points. A change of circumstances doesn't always mean you'll be award more points. It's too late for that now as the decision's been made.


You say appeal but i'm sure you mean Mandatory Reconsideration? Most of those MR decision remain the same.



Your next step is the Tribunal Request and you have 28 days from the MR decision date to do this. For this you will need to fill out the SSCS1 form and send your MR decision letter with it to the Tribunal to request the appeal. 70% of those who appear in person have a decision in their favour. Did you send in evidence to support your worsening of condition? Evidence would have been needed because they very rarely contact anyone for evidence.


Tribunal backlogs are huge all over the country so it could possibly be several months before your hearing date. This will give you plenty of time to gather more evidence. As long as it's sent to the Tribunal within 10 days of the hearing date, that's fine.


You can contact your local CAB or the likes for help with this if you're unsure what to do. Don't delay this though because very often they are busy and can't always fit those appointments in.



The upper age for PIP is 65, not 64.

Alice_Holt

suepatch wrote: »

I...... I asked for an appeal and that came back the same no payment

This, presumably, was the result of asking for a Mandatory Reconsideration (i.e you asked the DWP to look at their decision again), and the Mandatory Reconsideration Notice (MRN) from the DWP did not change their decision.
Is this correct?

Did you read the MRN?
It tells you that the next stage is to take your appeal to the Tribunal Service (TS).

Poppy has given you some great advice. Here is the SSCS1 form:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/695156/sscs1-eng.pdf
(Note that "You must include a copy of the mandatory reconsideration notice" - if you lost your MRN ask the DWP for a copy).

You can apply outside the one month time limit, (but no later than 13 months) and your appeal generally is accepted.

Here is some info on the process:
https://www.advicenow.org.uk/guides/how-win-pip-appeal
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/sick-or-disabled-people-and-carers/pip/appeals/apply-to-tribunal/

Here are the PIP descriptors:
https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/personal-independence-payment-pip/pip-points-system

GunJack

_shel wrote: »

What inconsistency? PIP and ESA are different benefits with different criteria!

Yes, but the pertinent point was that "But they fail to recognise the same symptoms make day-to-day living just as difficult." That's especially true for MH issues....have highlighted the relevant part in the original quote now, just to avoid confusion