Good News Story - my BB application.

poppy123456

MW123 said:

 After applying, ensure the safekeeping of these documents as you'll require them for your next BB renewal in three years.  

 

For the renewal you will need a letter from PIP with a date on it that's within the past year. Sending the original award letter isn't enough and they will refuse it.

MW123

I want to express my gratitude, Poppy, for sharing this information that I was previously unaware of. To provide some context, my last two Blue Badge applications were accepted without any PIP award for mobility. 

My upcoming BB renewal is scheduled for the end of May 2024. If I understand correctly, my last award letter, dated 02 August 2023, where I received 12 points in the mobility category, should automatically qualify me for renewal, and will still be in date to use, is that correct? 

After the 02 August 2024, will I need to obtain another letter to renew my car tax? I apologise for bombarding you with questions, but I genuinely appreciate your time and knowledge in these areas.

poppy123456

MW123 said:

I want to express my gratitude, Poppy, for sharing this information that I was previously unaware of. To provide some context, my last two Blue Badge applications were accepted without any PIP award for mobility. 

My upcoming BB renewal is scheduled for the end of May 2024. If I understand correctly, my last award letter, dated 02 August 2023, where I received 12 points in the mobility category, should automatically qualify me for renewal, and will still be in date to use, is that correct? 

After the 02 August 2024, will I need to obtain another letter to renew my car tax? I apologise for bombarding you with questions, but I genuinely appreciate your time and knowledge in these areas.

You're welcome. If you scored at least 8 points in the moving around part of mobility then yes this will automatically qualify you for the BB and your recent award letter will still be in date to use, as it's within the past year.

For road tax, if you're currently claiming free road tax since your PIP decision was made then you will not need another Certificate of Entitlement for next year unless you change your vehicle.

2oldcodgers

poppy123456 said:

MW123 said:

 After applying, ensure the safekeeping of these documents as you'll require them for your next BB renewal in three years.  

 

For the renewal you will need a letter from PIP with a date on it that's within the past year. Sending the original award letter isn't enough and they will refuse it.

Let me get this straight.
I need a copy of the original award letter which was dated, I think, 2016 giving me Enhanced Care & Enhanced Mobility for 3 years which was obtained after a MR that saw the award go from nothing to that. Previously I had a DLA long standing award for High Care & High Mobility before conversion to PIP in 2016.

I also need a copy of the original review award letter dated 2019 when the DWP decided to continue the 2016 award for a further 10 years to 2029.
 
All of those documents were used to support the 2020 renewal of my BB which have now been lost by the LA.

Sorry if this is getting boring but now you say that I need another letter (dated within the past 12 months). I have never had any review decision letter since 2019. However I do seem to remember that I did have a short letter from the DWP in or about April of this year simply telling me what my payments would be up to April 2024. That information is on my bank statements so there was no need to retain that letter. It certainly did not tell me what my award was and neither did it mention the points that I had been awarded.

Is that the letter that you are referring to? If so I will add it to the list that the DWP will have to send me.

Is there anything else that the LA would want from the DWP as you could imagine that I am totally and frankly p***** *** with it all. 

poppy123456

@2oldcodgers No idea why you've now decided to bring into the conversation about your 2016 award. 

As i keep continuing to advise you, all you need is the decision letter from DWP of the decision that that was made in 2019 because this will then have the date the letter is printed at the top of the letter, (the date you ask for that letter) which means that it would be dated within the past year.

No, you do not need the annual uprating letter because as i advised on a previous thread to you that those letter do not have where you scored the points to on them, so they are of no use for the BB application.

Quite simple really but somehow you decide to make it much more complicated than it really is.

I've continued to advise you of this in many different thread and we still seem to be coming back to the same questions. It's like we are going round in circles.

I wouldn't expect any LA to hold onto the PIP award letter from 2020 and even if they did, it wouldn't be of any use anyway because it's dated 2020, which isn't within the past year.

Just to also point out that now you've decided to agree that the decision made in 2019 was indeed DWP extending your award for 10 years, despite you saying otherwise right here in this thread. I give up!

MW123

Poppy, I received 12 points in the mobility section for moving around. I currently have no intentions of changing my vehicle in the next few years.  It appears that, at least for the time being, everything is in order. Your guidance has been of immense value,  thank you MW123

2oldcodgers

poppy123456 said:

@2oldcodgers No idea why you've now decided to bring into the conversation about your 2016 award. 

As i keep continuing to advise you, all you need is the decision letter from DWP of the decision that that was made in 2019 because this will then have the date the letter is printed at the top of the letter, (the date you ask for that letter) which means that it would be dated within the past year.

No, you do not need the annual uprating letter because as i advised on a previous thread to you that those letter do not have where you scored the points to on them, so they are of no use for the BB application.

Quite simple really but somehow you decide to make it much more complicated than it really is.

I've continued to advise you of this in many different thread and we still seem to be coming back to the same questions. It's like we are going round in circles.

I wouldn't expect any LA to hold onto the PIP award letter from 2020 and even if they did, it wouldn't be of any use anyway because it's dated 2020, which isn't within the past year.

Just to also point out that now you've decided to agree that the decision made in 2019 was indeed DWP extending your award for 10 years, despite you saying otherwise right here in this thread. I give up!

It must be me then that is confusing myself.
From what you say the only document that I actually need is a copy of the 2019 review award to make it a 10 year one?
That half page letter did not give any details of the points awarded and where. It only said that my old award (2016) would be extended for a further 10 years. Also you indicate that the DWP will re-date it so that it will show the date I asked for it thus it being within the past 12 months
Have I got that right?

So if I do that I will have to do the same again in 2026 when the BB would be up for another review?
Sorry about my inability to understand all of this.

But this is what the BB web page says:

Providing proof of benefits

Personal Independence Payment (PIP)

You’ll need to know the scores from the mobility assessment and the award end date (if applicable). You’ll also be asked to provide proof of the PIP award. This would be the 3 pages from the letter from DWP, which clearly shows:

• entitlement to PIP (front page)
• assessment scores (second to last page)
• mobility scores (last page)

Given that only the 2016 award letter shows this information would I not also need a copy of that as well? 

poppy123456

I’m sure I’ve answered this question before…yes you will need to ask PIP for a copy of that award letter. 

If that award letter in 2019 didn’t show where the points were scored what exactly did you send as proof for your BB in 2020? 

It’s the same process each time you need to apply for a new one. The maximum length of a BB is only ever 3 years. 

All LAs will ask for the same proof when you automatically qualify. I’ve moved to quite a few different LAs in the past 10 years and each one has had the same process. The only difference now is that you can claim digitally online with some LAs and photos can be sent as proof. 

BrettW

@2oldcodgers this could quite easily be solved by you phoning the PIP helpline, explaining that you need a letter proving your entitlement so that you can apply for your blue badge and then sending this to your LA. I don't understand why you are making this so difficult for yourself?

2oldcodgers

BrettW said:

@2oldcodgers this could quite easily be solved by you phoning the PIP helpline, explaining that you need a letter proving your entitlement so that you can apply for your blue badge and then sending this to your LA. I don't understand why you are making this so difficult for yourself?

I agree. The LA need confirmation of the award and what the points were. This has only ever been notified to me with the award notice in 2016 following the MR.
They also need to know the length of the award. This was changed in 2019 when they awarded a length of 10 years 
The only letter that I have had from them within the past 12 months was the uprating one in April this year which I got rid of as my bank statements show the amounts anyhow.

I'm not trying to make it difficult just trying to understand what the LA wants.

2oldcodgers

poppy123456 said:

I’m sure I’ve answered this question before…yes you will need to ask PIP for a copy of that award letter. 

If that award letter in 2019 didn’t show where the points were scored what exactly did you send as proof for your BB in 2020? 

It’s the same process each time you need to apply for a new one. The maximum length of a BB is only ever 3 years. 

All LAs will ask for the same proof when you automatically qualify. I’ve moved to quite a few different LAs in the past 10 years and each one has had the same process. The only difference now is that you can claim digitally online with some LAs and photos can be sent as proof. 

For the 2020 renewal I sent the decision notice from 2016 (following the MR), the 2019 decision letter advising that it is now a 10 year award and the uprating letter from April 2020. The LA must have accepted (presumably by them checking with the PIP database) everything as the BB was renewed.

 

poppy123456

2oldcodgers said:

poppy123456 said:

I’m sure I’ve answered this question before…yes you will need to ask PIP for a copy of that award letter. 

If that award letter in 2019 didn’t show where the points were scored what exactly did you send as proof for your BB in 2020? 

It’s the same process each time you need to apply for a new one. The maximum length of a BB is only ever 3 years. 

All LAs will ask for the same proof when you automatically qualify. I’ve moved to quite a few different LAs in the past 10 years and each one has had the same process. The only difference now is that you can claim digitally online with some LAs and photos can be sent as proof. 

For the 2020 renewal I sent the decision notice from 2016 (following the MR), the 2019 decision letter advising that it is now a 10 year award and the uprating letter from April 2020. The LA must have accepted (presumably by them checking with the PIP database) everything as the BB was renewed.

 

Ok so do the same this time, minus the uprating letter because that's not needed. You really have made something simple extremely complicated.

2oldcodgers

poppy123456 said:

2oldcodgers said:

For the 2020 renewal I sent the decision notice from 2016 (following the MR), the 2019 decision letter advising that it is now a 10 year award and the uprating letter from April 2020. The LA must have accepted (presumably by them checking with the PIP database) everything as the BB was renewed.

 

Ok so do the same this time, minus the uprating letter because that's not needed. You really have made something simple extremely complicated.

We are now back to the very beginning -  as you know those documents were sent to the LA in 2020 and subsequently have lost them.
I've not made it complicated - the LA have by losing my documents.
So we all now agree that I need the DWP to send me copies of (a) the final award notice (dated 2016) and (b) the (2019) letter advising that I have a 10 year award until 2029?

A job for tomorrow morning then and lets hope that your advice gets me my BB.

poppy123456

Your LA haven’t made it complicated, you have and I’m sorry if this isn’t what you want to hear. 

Even if your LA had kept the documents then they will have still been out of date and you would have still needed a letter dated within the last year as previously advised. 

I have given you all the advice when you first posted the question about this quite sometime ago. 

2oldcodgers

poppy123456 said:

2oldcodgers said:

For the 2020 renewal I sent the decision notice from 2016 (following the MR), the 2019 decision letter advising that it is now a 10 year award and the uprating letter from April 2020. The LA must have accepted (presumably by them checking with the PIP database) everything as the BB was renewed.

 

Ok so do the same this time, minus the uprating letter because that's not needed. You really have made something simple extremely complicated.

I have just put the 'phone down after speaking at length with my LA.
I asked them to confirm what documents they need as per your advice.

They have told me that they need a copy of the original award of 12 points for moving around (2016). If that report was not dated in the past 12 months they also want the original uprating letter that was issued within the past 12 months (April 2023).
In addition they want the original 2016 award letter that made it into a 10 year (2029) award.

So the uprating letter is vital to the application as well
Number given by the LA to ring the DWP is 0800 1214433

poppy123456

I’ve never had to send the annual uprating letter to any LA that I’ve lived when applying for any BB. 

That is the PIP helpline call centre and the usual number you ring for PIP. 

2oldcodgers

poppy123456 said:

I’ve never had to send the annual uprating letter to any LA that I’ve lived when applying for any BB. 

That is the PIP helpline call centre and the usual number you ring for PIP. 

This taken from my LA's webpage.

I now fully understand that I need to get copies of both the 2016 and 2019 letters/reports/award from the DWP. Because the originals of these are not dated within the past 12 months (since November 2022) I have to supply a copy of the uprating letter from April 2023.
It is pretty obvious that they want to see the current position ie that I am still in receipt of the Mobility payment (12 points). It all hinges on the LA wanting to see that I am still in receipt of Enhanced Mobility PIP.
If you have never had to send that document to your LA then either they are not working to the rule book or that your award letter is dated no later than 12 months past.

Mind you nothing ever surprises me with a LA. When I telephoned them some weeks ago to get their advice I was told something totally different. They said at that time that as I had a BB all that I needed for a renewal was to send them a copy of the April 2023 uprating letter. 
I honestly dismissed that advice as it just didn't sound right and it wasn't what they wanted for the 2020 renewal.

You get the Mobility Component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP)

You need to have a score of 8 points or more under the ‘moving around’ section of the PIP to be eligible for a Blue Badge.

If this applies to you, you must submit a copy of your original letter of entitlement– including the front page and the page showing your score for the ‘moving around’ section.

If your letter was not issued within the last 12 months, you must also include a copy of your annual uprating letter showing your current name and address.

We may confirm the information you give us with the DWP.

Your Blue Badge will expire at the end of your current entitlement shown on the letter you provide as evidence, or for 3 years from the date of issue, whichever is first.

poppy123456

@2oldcodgers please don’t accuse me of not acting within the rules because I don’t appreciate it! 

I can assure you that I do act within the rules. As I told you, I’ve never had to send an uprating letter and yes I have renewed my BB and have had to ring PIP for an updated letter dated within the past 12 months. 

I’m done here because I feel we have continued to go round in circles.