New style esa timeline

chocolatelover2251

did you hear back within 14 days? Today is the 14th day and I am still waiting to hear from them. I wondered if this is normal,

HillStreetBlues

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6678213/new-style-esa-timeline

They really need to remove that 14 days, as it's been ages since they hit that target, nearly all claims (if not all) take longer than 14 days.

huckster

I would say 18 to 23 days before you hear back and appointment booked to your local Job Centre.

So around 1 month from date of claim, before the Job Centre appointment is due.

Unfortunately, the number of people becoming unemployed appears to be gradually increasing, as companies are cutting back to reduce their costs. Even the local supermarkets are reducing the cleaning contracts they have and they are not recruiting new staff as often, with existing staff given a few extra hours if required. So is taking longer to deal with new claims due to volume and not enough staff to process them.

If you are struggling financially, you can call ESA to request an advance benefit payment while you are waiting.

rosewalk

I understand that there are currently some delays in ESA claimants being contacted. They used to be really quick but it can now take up to 23 days.

TimeLord1

Don't forget if it's a letter Royal Mail changed 2nd class letter deliveries to run every other weekday (Monday to Friday) with no Saturday delivery, aiming for a 3-weekday delivery window. And they're already building up backlogs of uncollected and sat in their storage for days now.