Esa3(ibrd)

Hello there,


My mum has received a ESA3(IBRD) form today from DWP claiming she might be able to get some money.


Researching a bit, it seems that a court case was lost and potentially some people might get back pay.


My question is... does she have to complete this form? It's a very long form and would take quite an effort to get bank statements etc and she would rather not do it, she is quite happy as she is.


Are there any consequences for not returning this form? On the face of it, they are being generous, but she would be worried sick they might take money away from her.


Thank you very much.

Comments

  • poppy12345
    poppy12345 Posts: 17,847
    First Anniversary First Post Name Dropper
    Forumite
    Hello there,


    My mum has received a ESA3(IBRD) form today from DWP claiming she might be able to get some money.


    Researching a bit, it seems that a court case was lost and potentially some people might get back pay.


    My question is... does she have to complete this form? It's a very long form and would take quite an effort to get bank statements etc and she would rather not do it, she is quite happy as she is.


    Are there any consequences for not returning this form? On the face of it, they are being generous, but she would be worried sick they might take money away from her.


    Thank you very much.
    Nope, she doesn't have to complete it but she could be owed money, depending on her circumstances during the dates stated in the letter. The only way to know for sure is to fill the form and return it.


    I can assure you that they won't be taking money away from her, this isn't what the underpayments are about.
  • Was your mum transferred from incapacity benefit to ESA at some point? if so then she might have been underpaid since, its not definite until they look into it but as poppy12345 rightly points out she has nothing to lose and might have something to gain.
  • ivyleaf
    ivyleaf Posts: 6,431
    First Anniversary First Post
    Forumite
    I didn't fill mine in, it was so long and I knew I wouldn't have been entitled to back pay because our household income income was too high at the time specified.

    Eventually I had a phone call about it, explained why I hadn't filled it in, and the lady on the other end was able to confirm that i wouldn't have been entitled.
  • KxMx
    KxMx Posts: 10,581
    First Post Name Dropper First Anniversary Photogenic
    Forumite
    You won't need bank statements as standard, I knew my savings were under the limit at the time, so I didn't have to provide them.

    I was 99% sure I wasn't owed anything but I filled in the form anyway just to be sure. I wasn't owed.
  • mrcol1000
    mrcol1000 Posts: 4,787
    First Post First Anniversary
    Forumite
    I knew my Dad wasn't entitled to any money back as he wasn't entitled to it in the first place, so ignored the form. I then got a phone call from DWP insisting my Dad was entitled to it and he was owed thousands of pounds. They refused to accept my belief he wasn't. Spent hours filling in the form and getting all the paperwork they required.

    Few months later got a letter saying he wasn't entitled to anything.
  • Thank you all for your comments. I shall have a look again at the form and see if we can collate everything. Her main concern was that potentially she could get reassessed and be told she had to owe money back.


    On page 43 it says in bold letter. You may lose benefit if you do not provide original documents within one month of the date that your claim form was sent to you. Which could be read as your benefits will be stopped and/or reduced, which is putting the knockers on her. There is also a bit that if we don't hear from you we'll contact you again in 4 weeks, which sounds quite sinister.
  • Nothing sinister at all, they would just check why the forms hadn't been sent back, this will not resort to a reassessment, and sometimes these letters are badly worded, she may and thats a may lose benefits that she may or may not have been receiving.
    Put simply is she now receiving income related ESA or contributions based?
  • poppy12345
    poppy12345 Posts: 17,847
    First Anniversary First Post Name Dropper
    Forumite
    Her main concern was that potentially she could get reassessed and be told she had to owe money back.
    If she's sent another work capability assessment form after she sends back the ESA3 form then it will be a complete coincidence. For the work capability assessment you can be re-assessed anytime from 3 months.



    Whether she's entitled to any backdated money will totally depend on her circumstances during the dates stated in the letter. The things they look at are savings/capital, living with a partner that works or claim other means tested benefits, which group she was in when she transferred across, income from pensions and any transitional support protection she may have had when transferring across.
This discussion has been closed.
Meet your Ambassadors

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 342.5K Banking & Borrowing
  • 249.9K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 449.4K Spending & Discounts
  • 234.6K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 607.1K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 172.8K Life & Family
  • 247.4K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 15.8K Discuss & Feedback
  • 15.1K Coronavirus Support Boards