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Assessment at my home.

mandy46

Please can anyone advise me. Is it true that to get an assessment by PIP st your house you need a letter stating why from your gp?
Well apparantly I'm having my first ever pip assessment at home tomorrow. Was supposed to be at 11.30 now she's rung and asked for 10.30am. Also when I asked her why I was having a home visit she said ..capita are doing most assessments at the home now....is this true.

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Comments

Neil2017

Hi @mandy46
i have heard of people having PIP assessments at home. I don’t know if this is optional, compulsory or triggered by a letter from your GP.

Maybe it helps a lot of people if you are pretty much at home a lot more than out and about. And perhaps it can give a better indication of how you cope day to day including if you’ve made any adaptations to the way you live compared to an able bodied person.

Perhaps someone who advises on Benefits could advise you more and if you have the option to opt out for whatever reason.

Rosiesmum

Hi @mandy46 We got a letter giving 2 days notice of a home visit which we didn't have to request we were just told the lady was coming.

How I was told it works is ATOS look at evidence then decide wether they have enough evidence for a paper review.If not they ask you to book an assessment either in a centre or at home.If you have clearly stated difficulties in attending a centre on your PIP application then its more likely you will have either a paper or home assessment.

Unfortunately it doesn't always work this well as many people know from their own experience.

Good luck with yours !!

CockneyRebel

Capita do tend to do more home assessments than Atos. Sometimes if your evidence is strong enough either company can decide to do a HV. Sometimes a GP letter specifically stating that you cannot attend a centre is required. Other times if they have a sudden vacancy for a HV and you are top of the pile it will be offered to you.

CR

mandy46

Thankyou for your responses...I was going to ask the lady tomorrow for a few helpful aids in my house. I got married last year and moved into my new husband's house so not made any changes...Also I was going to ask about a motor scooter to get around more

CockneyRebel

Hi mandy
The assessment you have is about your functionality and the monetary benefit you may be entitled to to help with this. The hcp will not give you any aids to help nor will they supply a scooter. If they assess your needs and recommend an award your will be expected to use this to buy your own aids and scooter. If you qualify for an enhanced mobility award you can use this to lease a car or scooter. There may be some support through the nhs but you would need to see your GP

CR

mandy46

Ahhh ok Thank you for letting me know ....
What do they do anyway at the assessment. Is it similar to the eas assessment

CockneyRebel

As this is a functionality assessment they will be watching every thing you do. From the first moment you open the door.
Have your ID out ready for them
they do make numerous assumptions based on very little
At this point the best thing to do is take the B&W self test to get an understanding of the points system, descriptors and the criteria for an award

http://www.mybenefitsandwork.co.uk/pip/indexxx.php

You do not have to make any special effort for the assessor, you do not need to get dressed if you normally would not do so at that time of day
If at all possible have someone with you.
As mobility is one of your issues be aware they may ask how long you can walk for not how far. To score the enhanced rate this needs to be less than 20metres or less than 30 seconds

I hope some of our other members can give you some more advice, sorry my meds are kicking in atm

Best of luck tommorow, please let us know how things go

CR

Matilda

@mandy46

Disability Rights (DR) site has a good guide to PIP including assessments. Also there are these two links.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/547146/pip-assessment-guide.pdf

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/519119/personal-independence-payment-handbook.pdf

Be confident at the assessment and look out for trick questions.

They might ask about hobbies. Doing craftwork or jigsaws could indicate a high level of manual dexterity. Also, going to the gym or swimming could indicate a high level of energy.

Asking if you have any pets is another one. Ability to look after pets, especially dogs, shows a certain level of energy.

Though there are no points for housework, they might ask about this as, again, this might indicate a certain level of energy if you do a lot of your own housework.

They might ask if sometimes you don't even bother to try and prepare a simple meal from fresh ingredients and just settle for a sandwich. Claimants have been classed as able to prepare a simple meal from scratch because they can get themselves a bowl of cereal or pot noodle! Again, be careful.

Your disabilities only have to be serious enough to qualify for at least 50% of the time, i.e. four days or more a week. I'd keep it simple. I began to explain to my assessor that I had five bad days a week on average and her eyes started to glaze over. So, I altered what I said to five days a week without any qualification - and she seemed happy!

mandy46

Thing is I have disc prolapse from c4/c7 which causes chronic pain,numbness weakness and server head pain which knocks me out for at least 3 days with vomiting and just complete drowsiness. I have a fusion from l4 to S1 which causes constant leg pain, calf and and ankle tightening pain and burning which is painfull to walk and climb stairs. Then I lost my balance and fell...I thought I damaged my right knee, but I'm getting pain in my groin, top thigh and server pain in my knee which is like my pain anyway chronic and 24/7. My gp any physio have said my disc at level 3 which was looking disc height has now gone. Do i tell her all this ?

Matilda

Yes. Eligibility for PIP is about how your conditions affect your ability to undertake various daily living tasks and walk. You will find the list of descriptors on the Disability Rights (DR) site.

mandy46

Well she came.
Asked loads of questions.
Said she wanted to do a physical of bending stretching etc...told her I can't do that so we didn't do that....will that cause a problem?
She asked about hobbies. I told her...I dint have any....which insist lol

CockneyRebel

If you explained why you couldn't do the physical exercise there should not be a problem
Sounds like you had a reasnable assessor
You should ring up and ask for a copy of the report in a couple of days which will give you an indication of how things were recorded

CR

mandy46

Are you allowed a copy of the assessment report?

CockneyRebel

Yes indeed. It should be available 2-4 days after assessment. Just ring DWP and ask

CR

mandy46

And does that five you an idea of wether they gonna stop it

CockneyRebel

It will give you the recommendation of the assessor and the possible points you could score. Usually but not always the DM will accept the report and award in line with it

CR

Rosiesmum

Glad to hear it went OK for you today and hope you get some good news soon.

mandy46

How long after the assessment for the results

CockneyRebel

Hi mandy

The decision should take 2-4 weeks but there are delays at the moment. When you receive the assessors report , if you have concerns about what your award should be then you can ring and ask to speak to a DM to discuss this before the decsion is made. Otherwise you should ring for an update on your decision after 4 weeks

CR

Neil2017

Hi @mandy46
This is all useful information for me as I have it all to come on the switch from DLA to PIP.

Hope all is going well for you.
Neil