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Weird Nonsense Silly and Even Stupid Questions PIP or WCA Assessors have asked

OneSunnyDay1

I am completely confused about the assessors.

Are they incompetent or just pretending to be? Is the DWP just hiring anyone to do these jobs? Are they making up their own questions during the assessment? Are they asking nonsense questions so that don't have anything relevant to write down in the report? Or are they asking silly questions that get people annoyed and upset, to leave and not complete the assessment?

Please share any questions you have been asked that don't make sense to you.

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Comments

OneSunnyDay1

Sharing questions from someone's assessment I sat in on my comment will all be based on that assessment.

Person very ill for 6 years is mostly housebound, hardly goes outside as they struggle to do things for themself including making decisions, making phone calls, eating, even standing up.

PIP Assessor: What are your hobbies?

Person: I don't have hobbies, I'm too sick I struggle to get things done.

PIP Assessor: What were your hobbies before before then?

Person: What? Why do you need to know what my hobbies were before I was sick, from 6 years ago?

Meredithshep

PIP Assesor - When you go out with your husband and you sit in the car do you have the window open or closed

Person - Closed if it's raining or cold and open if it's too warm in the car but if I take my coat off I may leave it closed.

honeyhoney

PIP Assesor: do you work?
Person: no
PIP Assesor: how do you get to work?
Person: but I don't work
PIP Assesor: how long have you been out of work?
Person: I don't remember a year or two
PIP Assesor: and when did you work, how did you get to work?
Person: a friend drove me (ignoring the fact that when I worked I didn't need any PIP)

OneSunnyDay1

Meredithshep I am going to put yours in the stupid question category 😂 and honeyhoney I am going to say deceitful question category (seemed like they were trying to get an fake answer to write down) . Honestly thought it would be hard to top mine but you both have and it's kind of sad to see already they are probably doing it to a lot of people.

I have way more that I have heard that I will continue to share…

Jimm_Alumni

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/928452#Comment_928452

I will say, part of the reason for asking what you used to do is to evidence how your life has been affected by your illness. If before you went jogging everyday and now you cannot because of your conditions that is actually something that supports your claim. It shows your conditions are affecting how you want to live your life. It can seem silly in the moment I know.

I've been through the assessment myself and some of the questions can indeed by quite odd. I did raise an eyebrow at @honeyhoney's as it seems quite obvious what the answers would be. It feels sometimes like they aren't listening and just going through a checklist without considering what has already been answered.

honeyhoney

I think someone should write a book based on the assessor's questions and PIP reports.

I'm sure he would earn good money

and Monty Python's cabaret is a piece of cake. 🤣

for example my report.

Budget Management: 0

Assessor: Although the claimant hasn't driven a car for almost a year, but when he did, he paid for fuel at a petrol station with a debit card. That's why he doesn't need help with budget management. Score: ZERO (although there was never such a question) 😂

OneSunnyDay1

Honey Honey that's a good one. I've seen examples of questions like that. No proof of budgeting capability but they still find a way to say the person is responsible and capable.

A similar one was. Did they do GCSE maths? Answer: Yes. Well they can budget their money. Well no they can't…

OneSunnyDay1

Another one I saw.

Assessor: What do you do when the amount for your bills change?

Person confused by question: What bills? I don't have any bills that change, what are you talking about bills changing?

The person explained they were genuinely confused, because the way everything was set up they didn't have any bills that changed. They thought DWP had been looking at their bank account to see their bills, but if they had they wouldn't have asked that question 🙃.

Like you said if someone wrote a book of all the nonsense questions they ask and things that they try to force you to say, it would make it to the number 1 on everyone's reading list.

WhatThe

Yes.

OneSunnyDay1

WhatThe Yes, I thought the same thing. Ask rubbish questions, so they don't have anything to write anything down that will help you.

And it's also a good way to pee people off, get them angry or upset so they refuse to continue or maybe they leave the interview and then the assessor writes the person refused to continue and ended the interview. It's incredibly abusive behaviour by the government.

They are using disgusting tactics. The government is causing people mental health distress, when all they are trying to do is get some help.

WhatThe

You witnessed this for yourself. Thank you so much for sharing because the message claimants are getting is that it's their fault for xxx reason and that we're only hearing of the unlucky ones and it's their fault anyway...

Amaya_Ringo

I wish I had my report in front of me so I could quote the actual misspellings and use of the wrong word, often a homonym, in my assessment report.

I don't remember the actual questions without digging out the recording but I do remember a lot of nonsense on my decision letter and MR and assessment report.

The ultimate best one from my MR is…

"Candidate's disability officer reports that candidate is "academically gifted". This indicates that candidate can function and does not need support (or words to that effect).

The words "academically gifted" came in a statement that was seven paragraphs long, all of which detailed support I received at university on account of my disability from the disability team, DSA and my autism mentor. But the MR stopped at 'academically gifted'. Apparently being at university solves all disability needs. Who knew.

Albus_Alumni

I was asked how I kept in touch with family, so I said occasionally my father would send me a message via facebook, as he knew I couldn't talk on the phone due to ptsd and anxiety.

My report then said I was totally fine engaging with people face to face because I could use Facebook. 😂

karen19862

I can bathe, shower, get dressed, prepare food yadda yadda yadda, because I can smoke a cigarette and have passed my driving test!

WhatThe

😂

whistles

Assessor-did you go to a normal school.

Yes

Assessor "do you use Facebook"

Report, doesn't use the internet. Yes I do, I just don't use Facebook. 😁

Assessor "if you buy an item in a shop for 89p hour much change should you get from £5.00.

I wouldn't get anything, as I use my card.

Budgeting money 0

whistles

😁

For my first assessment it said to let them know if I had any additional access needs. The person who came with me was in a wheelchair, I wasn't.

So I said about access for them but they got confused and thought it was for me and somehow that was outside the scope of pip. Obviously since they aren't claiming, I am 😂

chiarieds

I have a congenital hereditary disorder (Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome), which was all mentioned on my PIP claim form. One of the first questions my assessor asked was, 'How long have you had Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome?' My answer, 'since birth….' my assessor was a nurse, & midwife 😁

WhatThe

😯

jackfruiticeberg82

Phoned PIP last week. Before I could get my first question out the officer barked "Are you calling from Ireland?". I was born in N Ireland and have lived in London for 40 years. If I had a French accent would she have asked me if I was calling from Paris? Totally unprofessional. Also during me review phone call the officer made a really crass, stereotypical comment about my ethnicity. I worked for local authority for 35 years and you do not make statement like this to people. Serious Equalities Act training required.