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PIP REVIEW

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  • coachman12
    coachman12 Posts: 1,069 Forumite
    1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    My daughters support worker wrote a supporting letter for her PIP review last year, which stated what she needed help/support with and this was used as evidence, so yes these letters can definitely be very useful.
    What a lovely prompt response. Tim has so much help and is busy completing his form, together with lots of recent consultants' letters and hopefully ignoring the GP option. As I said, a health worker or professional helper is fine. It's relatives that my DWP informant told me were treated with some doubt. 
  • Alice_Holt
    Alice_Holt Posts: 6,094 Forumite
    Ninth Anniversary 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    edited 20 February 2020 at 7:23PM
       "As someone who has been completing PIP forms for three friends/relatives, I find GP records are of little help. Nor are GP letters...
    The same is true of letters from family members and those close to the applicant because DWP staff actually told me on one occasion that they are regarded as biased."



    To borrow your phraseology....

         As someone who has been with my local CAB for over seven years writing appeal submissions, and helping hundreds of clients successfully appeal benefit decisions to FTT  (and UTT), I find....
    a)  Tribunal panels would disagree with your first assertion, as  in cases where they feel more evidence is required, direction notices are routinely issued to obtain the surgery medical records of appellants.
    b) GP letters can be helpful if they touch on the PIP / WCA descriptors. Are you aware of ESA113 reports, for instance? 
    If you google it you will find that is the report DWP use to contact the claimant's GP for more WCA information.   
    c) Letters from carers / family members are useful supporting evidence. And at tribunal, accumulating such evidence in favour of the claimant's case all helps weigh the evidence in their favour.
    Having a consistent picture of the care needs of the claimant throughout the claim process - PIP form, attached medical evidence, confirmation of help given, etc - does make it much easier to get to get flawed assessments overturned.

    If you doubt this, then read through this guide:
    https://www.advicenow.org.uk/guides/how-win-pip-appeal
    and pay particular attention to section 9.
    "For most people, the thing that is of most help is written evidence from their GP or other doctor."
    "I
    f there is somebody who helps you a lot (this might be ... your partner, a family member, or a friend), they may be able to write some very useful evidence too. Ask them to write a letter to the tribunal panel explaining what help they give you and how often."
    This guide deals with tribunal appeals, but clearly having this information already included with the claim pack can reduce the risk of a flawed DWP decision.

    Anyway, ....
    Alice Holt Forest situated some 4 miles south of Farnham forms the most northerly gateway to the South Downs National Park.
  • calcotti
    calcotti Posts: 15,696 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Re evidence from family or friends. I have had an AA claim successfully revised at MR stage when the only additional evidence provided was a statement by the claimants spouse describing the help they provided. It said the same (in different words) as the claimant had said they needed help with on the claim form.
    Information I post is for England unless otherwise stated. Some rules may be different in other parts of UK.
  • Capita told us at my CAB last week that they can attach up to 12 documents to a case as evidence, but too many is a waste of time ploughing through them all to select the best. This suggests that GP, consultant reports, support worker and family reports could all be useful- just not too many. Select the most useful. Capita also said they may ask  for evidence if none is provided, eg writing to GPS, who do not always reply, or send something unhelpful. So it is best if the claimant gets the evidence and sifts out the most relevant.
  • Alice_Holt
    Alice_Holt Posts: 6,094 Forumite
    Ninth Anniversary 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Capita told us at my CAB last week that they can attach up to 12 documents to a case as evidence, but too many is a waste of time ploughing through them all to select the best. 
         Thanks, 
           That's helpful to know.
    Alice Holt Forest situated some 4 miles south of Farnham forms the most northerly gateway to the South Downs National Park.
  • coachman12
    coachman12 Posts: 1,069 Forumite
    1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Capita told us at my CAB last week that they can attach up to 12 documents to a case as evidence, but too many is a waste of time ploughing through them all to select the best. 
         Thanks, 
           That's helpful to know.
    Yes indeed . And thanks for confirming that it's helpful to know.  
  • Tim72
    Tim72 Posts: 10 Forumite
    Second Anniversary First Post
    Thank you all for your comments and help ,you may not realize how helpful all the comments are for me ,as a first timer on here and this is my first review all comments are extremely helpful ,if gives me a broad spectrum of thing to consider and help me ,so thank you all ,
    Tim72 .
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