PIP award reduced after brief assessment.

Betty26

Good morning 

I posted on here back in May, as my disabled badge was about to expire and I hadn’t heard back from the DWP re my review.

My original award ran out in July but after my local council looked on the system, there were able to tell me that it had been extended to July 2024. So I was quite relieved and didn’t think I had to do anything else.

On 9th August, I had a call from an unknown number which I answered. The man said he was from the DWP and he wanted to do an assessment about my condition.

I hadn’t had any notification of this and said that it wasn’t really convenient. I was at my daughters and her Mother In Law was also there, so I didn’t want her to hear my personal health issues. (Incontinence etc) 

He said “it will only take 10 minutes, so if we can do it now that would be helpful”. Plus they’d had my review form since August 2022, so I reluctantly went ahead.

It became apparent that he hadn’t looked at my review form, as when I mentioned things, he questioned them. But they had been on the review form, so he’d clearly not looked through it. Also, he asked if I could walk for 5-6 minutes, to which I replied “no, I can’t even walk for a minute”, and then went on to describe how I get about. I also got the impression that he wasn’t really listening and at the end he stopped typing. (Throughout he was entering my information onto the system).

Yesterday I got the awards letter and my award has been downgraded from the enhanced rate for daily living and mobility, to the standard rate for daily living, with no mobility. So I will still get something. 

I can accept the reduced daily living but the mobility is completely wrong. 

When I read through the decision makers report, it was filled with inconsistencies. For instance, it stated that I had indicated I could walk more than 50 metres but less than 200 meters, but the distance was never mentioned in my assessment, just minutes.

Also it said I needed help to eat, which I didn’t say.

I called the DWP and after holding on for nearly 2 hours got through. I’ve asked for a mandatory reconsideration but the man on the phone just wanted to tick boxes.

I mentioned that I thought I should have had an appointment for the assessment as I could’ve asked someone to be with me and get my notes etc, but he didn’t really say anything. Also, they had extended my award until next July but now taken it from me? 

Sorry for the very long post, but I’m at my wits end, as I have lost quite a significant amount of money each week and I’m not sure what to do. 

I hope someone can offer me some advice.

Thank you 

pinkrose

Betty I am so sorry for what's happened, i had a very similar experience years ago with ESA, the report was a 'tissue of lies' by the assessor . I was refused at MR stage and went to a tribunal, the DR and tribunal judge said, "we are not doing this full (tribunal)" they asked 2 quick questions and said "this is appalling and you shouldn't be here"....they put me in support group with disability premiums ....so my advice to you is APPEAL and STICK with it !
 Please keep us updated, i hope it all gets sorted out for you !
I'm awaiting  my pip review and am expecting an ESA one very soon too because it's been a long time since  my  last  one....and I'm filled with dread because I know, like you and many others that things can go wrong due to unfair and down right wrong practices such as this.
Good luck Betty
Rose. X

Betty26

Hi Rose
I just feel the assessor didn’t do a very good assessment, if that makes sense. I guess I’ll have to wait for a response to my MR and go from there. I haven’t heard from ESA since I claimed in February 2020, so I’ll probably hear from them at some point.
Thank you for your reply and I’ll add to this thread once I hear back. 

Becky93

Doesn't seem an uncommon experience. I can only base off my experience, but I had multiple assessors and it always feels like they are trying to trick you. You just need to keep fighting, if you're entitled to it you will get it if you take it all the way to tribunal.

Jimm_Alumni

Hi @Betty26, really sorry to hear about this awful experience you had. I've been through a PIP assessment that was just riddled with things I didn't say about my situation or missing things I did say, so I understand that frustration. I'm glad you're already moving forward with Mandatory Reconsideration (MR), Scope has a section on MR here Appealing a DWP decision | Disability charity Scope UK. It also links you to other sites and locations you can get advice and support on it.

I hope it all works out for you, please keep us updated if it's no trouble

Betty26

Becky93 said:

Doesn't seem an uncommon experience. I can only base off my experience, but I had multiple assessors and it always feels like they are trying to trick you. You just need to keep fighting, if you're entitled to it you will get it if you take it all the way to tribunal.

Thank you. Hopefully it won’t go to the Tribunal but I’ve heard so many PIP stories, I think it will. 

Betty26

Jimm_Scope said:

Hi @Betty26, really sorry to hear about this awful experience you had. I've been through a PIP assessment that was just riddled with things I didn't say about my situation or missing things I did say, so I understand that frustration. I'm glad you're already moving forward with Mandatory Reconsideration (MR), Scope has a section on MR here Appealing a DWP decision | Disability charity Scope UK. It also links you to other sites and locations you can get advice and support on it.

I hope it all works out for you, please keep us updated if it's no trouble

I called them on Friday but I felt that the man who was completing the MR was just reading questions from a screen. Do you think I should write in as well and list everything down? Not sure if it would make a difference. 

chiarieds

Hi @Betty26 - yes, certainly send of something written. This is the trouble with ringing to start a MR, as the process begins then. However you can send extra evidence in at any time, so hopefully before a decision is made, & it can make a difference.

In your MR letter say where you feel you ought to have received points, & why. Illustrate this by giving one or 2 recent, detailed examples as to the difficulty you face for each applicable activity/descriptor, i.e. when did it happen, where, what happened, did anyone see this, & were there any consequences to attempting/doing an activity, e.g. pain, fatigue, breathlessness?
Very importantly say 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.
Do have another look at the activities/descriptors again: https://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/asset-library/personal-independence-payment-descriptors-and-scores-april-2023.pdf

A more detailed link here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/personal-independence-payment-assessment-guide-for-assessment-providers/pip-assessment-guide-part-2-the-assessment-criteria  (please read the section on 'Reliability')

Make sure 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. Good luck!

Betty26

@chiarieds I’ll send off something tomorrow, so they should get it on Tuesday. I just feel I haven’t been assessed properly, I thought it would be a set appointment and face to face. Not a quick phone call. I’ll let you all know how it goes. 

Thank you 

chiarieds

I agree with you, as you're supposed to be given at least a week's notice before an assessment. Also, altho an assessor doesn't have to ask you about all the activities you may have problems with, it wasn't appropriate (in my opinion) to carry on with the call when you weren't even at home. Phone assessments are still the norm however.

Hopefully with your written MR you will be able to show exactly where you do have problems in attempting/doing an activity, & why.

Thank you for kindly saying you will let us all know how you get on.

Betty26

@chiarieds
I had a text on the 12th June saying I may need an assessment. Then the phone call on the 9th August. No warning or letter. 

I’ve written my MR letter now, so will get that off tomorrow. I’ve mentioned everything I think they need to know, so we shall see how it goes.
Thank you for your help. 

chiarieds

You're very welcome.

Jimm_Alumni

I remember reading an article about the DWP cold-calling people a few years ago, but promised to stop after legal action was threatened. 

I'll look into that again because this sounds oddly similar.

Let us know how your situation progress @Betty26, good luck with writing out and sending the MR

Betty26

@Jimm_Scope
I found this from the Citizens Advice “It's important you prepare - the DWP will use evidence from the assessment to decide if you can get PIP. Your assessment provider will be Independent Assessment Services or Capita - you should get a letter telling you which one it will be.” 

I received no letter or text, so feel I couldn’t prepare properly. 

I’ve written all of this in my letter and said the assessment wasn’t fair and I should have the opportunity to have another one. 

chiarieds

The DWP calling disabled people before their Tribunal can be seen here @Jimm_Scope https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/jul/14/dwp-policy-of-cold-calling-disabled-people-over-benefit-claims-to-end   we saw members here who were pressurised to accept the DWP's offer that day, or told that they'd call the following day if a claimant said they needed time to think about it. This caused an awful lot of anxiety.

Betty26

Afternoon everyone
I thought I would just add to this thread, rather than start a new one, then you can see the history. 

I have just received a response to my Mandatory Reconsideration and the decision still stands, they will only pay me the standard rate of the daily living amount, which I agree with and no mobility award, which I strongly disagree with. 

When I read through the decision makers notes, it was apparent that she was basing her decision on the “medical professional’s” phone assessment to me. This was no different to the review assessment.

I had written a 4 page letter to add to my MR but this has been totally overlooked. 

I called the DWP to check if they’d received the letter, which they had. But they couldn’t confirm if it had been read? I’d asked several questions about the process in my letter and these hadn’t been answered. Plus I’d requested a copy of my review form which wasn’t sent. So it became obvious that either it wasn’t read or read and ignored.
I am going to appeal and hopefully will be able to put my points across on the form. 

Would you say it’s better to attend the Tribunal? There is an option to let them the decide in your absence. Not sure what’s best?
Any advice would be gratefully received and thank you in advance. 

poppy123456

It’s not unusual for the MR decision to be a copy and paste of the original decision. Only 23% of MR decisions change in the claimants favour.

68% chance at Trubunal, providing you either appear in person or have a telephone/video hearing. 

Betty26

Good afternoon everyone
i thought I would update you and say a huge thank you for all your help and advice re my PIP renewal. After 5 months I have finally had my award reinstated, after the DWP reduced my award by £105 per week. 

I proceeded to the Tribunal with my claim, as I felt the letter I wrote for my Mandatory Reconsideration hadn’t even been looked at. Also the way my assessment was handled meant my condition wasn’t reported properly.
The Tribunal gave the DWP a certain time to respond by (they didn’t), so the DWP were put in the position that they had to look at the case again and be answerable to the Tribunal. 

I had a phone call from a very nice man at the DWP, who said they wanted to avoid a Tribunal hearing if they could and that was keen to sort it out there and then.
He went through everything with me and agreed that my case hadn’t been handled properly. He said that it had been assumed that when I claimed in 2020, I was having cancer treatment and by now I should be okay. Apparently this happens with 5% of renewals. Quite shocking that my letter wasn’t even looked at and the assessment notes weren’t even taken into account.

He agreed to award me full PIP and I was back paid to the 8th September, which was such a relief.

My advice to anybody going through this at the moment is, don’t ever give up. If you feel you are entitled to PIP then appeal all the way. 

Rosie_Scope

Thanks so much for updating @Betty26.  I think your original post was just before I joined Scope, but it's so good to read that you've got your PIP all sorted now. It must be a real relief  

chiarieds

It's good to hear from you again @Betty26 - after such a poor start with your PIP review, it's great to read that you had such a successful outcome from the DWP in the end. Congratulations

Lou67

@Betty26
Oh that’s great news it’ll be a massive relief for you.
Just a shame you had to go through all that.
Now you can treat yourself to something nice.

You should stick around join in the chats and there’s plenty of games too.

Take care ❤️