benefit advice

dion

is there anyone here who can answer my esa appeal question please I'm desprate 

Halfpint1319

@dion I know a bit about ESA & how it works can you let me know what you’re worried about pxx

dion

hi  and thanks for getting back to me I won esa appeal three weeks ago but the dwp called yesterday to say thay are chalangeing the tribunals decision can u tell me where I stand and is it unusual for them to do this and what are the odds that thay will go against the tribunals decision any help is much appreciated. I had my medical back last September were thay said I was fit for work

dion

I been getting letters from rent people and was hoping I could clear rent with  back pay thay owe but then thay come up with this and say there ch gonna calangeing it. I'm so worried I'm gonna loss my flat if thay stop it I don't no what to do. I got lots of health problems and also ting to control my addiction problems 

Halfpint1319

@dion it’s unusual for this to happen, but it did happen to my friend & she won it & they had to back date her the 2yrs she had been fighting it. Are you receiving ESA or JSA at the moment as you can apply for housing benefit, I know it won’t help with your arrears, but if you have a housing association then they can apply to take the arrears from your benefit at £3 a week, if it’s a private landlord speak to them explain what is going on hopefully they will be sympathetic to your situation, DON’T give up fight them as this is a way of getting people to give up, go to your GP let them know how much stress you’re under & that you’re struggling because that will help as well pxx

dion

yeah I'm getting esa appeal rate witch is the same amount as jsa I'm with Lambeth cancel I'm in claming housing benefit but havent been paying my top up and got myself in arers hankt for your help. I'm on methadone for drug addiction and on antidepressants. my doc knows about the stress I'm under. what can I do if thay say I'm fit for work? oh god I don't no what I'm gonna do 

poppy123456

Hi,

The same rules apply to DWP as us when appealing a decision. They have 28 days to ask for the statement of reasons from the Tribunal. This doesn't mean they are appealing the decision. To be able to appeal to the Upper Tribunal they must first find an error in law in making the decision. I highly doubt that in 3 weeks, they have got the statement of reasons and found an error in law already. They most likely are just asking for the statement of reasons at this stage.

Backpay can take 6-8 weeks.

dion

thanks for your reply it's just the lady who called me said even though i won and been put in support group there challenging the decision and it's getting to me now and not sure what the outcome is gonna be????

Jan1959

I have just been through this myself, I won my appeal and was placed in the support group, my case challenged, I went for another assessment,  I couldn't hold in my emotions any longer, the assessor immediatley wrote to my doctor and sent me there with the letter. i received a letter two weeks later saying that I had won and was placed in the support group, My mental health has been a huge problem for me for decades, The job centre has been on with this for the last five years, and now i can finally breathe a sigh of relief, I don't know if this will help anyone, I  sure hope it does. it also helps if you can take a carer or other person that knows you well to the assessment

tania1973

I am going through the same. I have my appeal allowed. Now I have to wait to see if the DWP appeals against it 

valleyboy

Just for future reference,When you asked to attend a esa assessment,always request the assessment to be recorded and always take someone with you who will speak on your behalf,that way the practioner cannot lie then in their reports which is what they normally do..

poppy123456

valleyboy said:

Just for future reference,When you asked to attend a esa assessment,always request the assessment to be recorded and always take someone with you who will speak on your behalf,that way the practioner cannot lie then in their reports which is what they normally do..

During an assessment unless you have an appointee then mostly the HCP will not let anyone speak on your behalf. The claimant needs to answer all the questions their self in their own words. Some HCPs will allow prompting from the person that's with the claimant but some won't even allow that.

Halfpint1319

The thing is they’re not allowed to do that as some people with certain conditions find it very difficult to speak to strangers & feel intimidated when spoken to. I also know that they are told to make these assessments as difficult as possible & to cut people of if they’re taking too long to explain aspects of how their illness/ disabilities affect them & impact on them

poppy123456

They are allowed to do that, even at Tribunal it's exactly the same. They will always want to know in the claimants own words how their conditions affect them.

valleyboy

Well during my first esa assessment the person I took with me actually answered all questions,with regards to the most recent one a friend also answered and explained a few thing's..
Some claimants do get confused by certain questions which ain't explained more easier hence a friend/support worker can address them..

poppy123456

You were very lucky, if they weren't your appointee. I don't want other people thinking that the same will apply to them because usually a claimant has to answer all questions their self.

valleyboy

Yes understand what you mean but some HCPS do allow it..
I think it should be allowed especially when a claimant is being assessed for a mental health issues not physical..