Need help with PIP appeal

nedauk44

I applied for PIP on February 6 and today I received the decision letter, which I got only 11 points for daily life. I had surgery last year on both legs, and I still suffer from foot and knee pain issues. Also, due to domestic violence and abuse since 2013, I have problems with depression, anxiety and panic attacks, as well as ocd. Everything in the decision letter is wrong and I didn't say any of it, even if no one brings me food or cooks, I won't eat anything and I can't stand and cook at all, but it is written that I can cook, but everything is wrong in the letter And they have written falsely. I really need someone to help me and I need support, but I don't know where and how I can get help? I need someone's help to write a MD for me.

nedauk44

said:

I applied for PIP on February 6 and today I received the decision letter, which I got only 11 points for daily life. I had surgery last year on both legs, and I still suffer from foot and knee pain issues. Also, due to domestic violence and abuse since 2013, I have problems with depression, anxiety and panic attacks, ocd. Everything in the decision letter is wrong and I didn't say any of it, even if no one brings me food or cooks, I won't eat anything and I can't stand and cook at all, but it is written that I can cook, but everything is wrong in the letter And they have written falsely. I really need someone to help me and I need support, but I don't know where and how I can get help? I need someone's help to write a MD for me. 

chiarieds

Hi @nedauk44 - & welcome to the community. It's good you were awarded the standard rate for the daily living component. Unfortunately we often hear about 'inaccuracies' in assessor's reports & consequently in decision letters, which make you feel upset & not listened to. I would however ask you to look at the points that can be awarded, to see if you feel you ought to have gained further points for both components (daily living & mobility). Please see: https://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/asset-library/personal-independence-payment-descriptors-and-scores-april-2023.pdf

Points 'may' have been awarded where you didn't expect them, or not awarded where you think they should. Overall if you don't feel this reflects your difficulties, you can do a Mandatory Reconsideration (MR) & another decision maker will look at everything again.

You should do your MR in writing pointing out where you feel you ought to have gained points & exactly why. You should illustrate this by giving a couple of recent, detailed examples as to the difficulty you face for each applicable descriptor, i.e. when did it happen, where, what happened, did anyone see this, & were there any consequences to attempting/doing an activity such as pain/fatigue?
Describe if you can't do an activity 'reliably,' i.e. safely, to an acceptable standard, repeat as often as one would reasonably expect, or if it takes you much longer than someone without a disability. See this mentioned at the end of the link above.
If you do your MR as a letter, ensure you put your name & National Insurance number on each page. Keep a copy, & get a free Certificate of Posting from your Post Office when sending it off.

Jimm_Scope

Hi @nedauk44, welcome to the commuity, this is a situation we hear a lot here at Scope. I'm glad you've reached out to to us try and find some support and advice.

Often when it comes to writing these it can be very helpful to have someone present with you, who has the time to be explained exactly how you are affected and has experience in wording/writing them down. Have you tried your local Citizen's Advice? They often have advisers who can help you with this, you can find your local one using the search function on the website page linked here --> Contact us - Citizens Advice.

If you'd like to read more about challenging a DWP decision regarding PIP we have our own advice page here Appealing a DWP decision | Disability charity Scope UK

Becky93

The best in-depth guide on the internet imo is this:

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/sick-or-disabled-people-and-carers/pip/help-with-your-claim/fill-in-form-pip/3-prepare-and-cook-meal/

It's really helpful going through every descriptor which you think could apply to you for information on how to demonstrate it applies to you.

I would just approach it in systematic approach. List each descriptor you believe you've been assessed incorrectly and why, use language from the Citizen's Advice website to explain why the descriptor applies to you.

Jimm_Scope

That is actually what I used when filling out my own PIP forms, very good, very detailed and really helped.