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Finally got my decision after 5 months but need to appeal :(

Thomas69

So it's been 5 months since the phone call asking to switch from DLA to Pip I had my award letter last week... Scored 10 points on mobility (planning and following a journey) but only scored 4 points with daily living in total..
Some of what the decision maker put in his statement really peed me off and there was even spelling mistakes so I feel it was rushed.. clearly!
I had my dad phone up to start the appeal process but because we weren't happy with practically all of the daily living parts they guy on the phone just said write it all down with what you don't agree with etc etc but because I don't have the face to face report I had to request it because he said that will help with getting evidence together to appeal. In theory I've only got around 20 days left and I'm worrying if this face to face report takes ages to come I might miss the deadline.. this has ruined my Christmas.. nerves are shot.. can barely get any sleep and was hoping it was going to be over getting my award letter.. just feel like this will never end! I really need some help.. are there any websites out there which can advise me on appeal info etc and how long do the face to face reports usually take to come through.. he advised up to 2 weeks!

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poppy123456

It's not vital that you have the report to put the MR request in writing but it can help. The decision letter will tell you where you scored the points in for the daily living part.

When requesting the MR/Tribunal they will look at the whole decision again and not just part of it.

You need a copy of the descriptors next to you when writing the letter. Point out where you think you should have scored those points, your reasons why and give 2-3 examples of what happened the last time you did that activity. DWP won't be interested in any lies that may have been told in the report.

As you've already requested the MR over the phone then you won't miss the 1 month deadline, you actually have 13 months to request it anyway, with good reason. Sometimes requesting the MR over the phone isn't always the best idea because they can just go ahead with the decision and not wait for the letter and any extra evidence, this has happened to lots of people.

Bare in mind that only 18% of MR decisions change so you'll most likely have to take it to Tribunal as most people do.

Thomas69

Thank you poppy, think what I'm going to do is just start the letter soon with the help of my brother's wife ( she had to do the court appeal and won) so is the best person to help me with this. Only just found that out tonight. She's going to help type it all up on the computer with the help of my mother. Looking it up on Google seems over 50% of people need to do the MR then onto appeal which is insane! What really bothered me about the decision makers claim is that he stated things like he was the one who did the face to face like I look nourished?? To make a claim like that without seeing me is hilarious.

Yadnad

Thomas69 said:

Thank you poppy, think what I'm going to do is just start the letter soon with the help of my brother's wife ( she had to do the court appeal and won) so is the best person to help me with this. Only just found that out tonight. She's going to help type it all up on the computer with the help of my mother. Looking it up on Google seems over 50% of people need to do the MR then onto appeal which is insane! What really bothered me about the decision makers claim is that he stated things like he was the one who did the face to face like I look nourished?? To make a claim like that without seeing me is hilarious.

For a start the DWP will only repeat what the assessor has put in their report - if they said that you nourished then the DWP will agree with it.

In fact only approx 7% of all claimants decide to challenge the decision and of those approx 5% win at the Tribunal.
Effectively the DWP tell us that about 93% are happy with their award.

poppy123456

Thomas69 said:

What really bothered me about the decision makers claim is that he stated things like he was the one who did the face to face like I look nourished?? To make a claim like that without seeing me is hilarious.

The DM doesn't need to see you to make that statement. Once the assessment report is written then they mostly go with that and award what's recommended.

Thomas69

Probably me just not understanding it right. Just seemed like that is what they where saying..
Strange that the decision makers aren't the ones doing the assessments.. cut out the middle man and that gets rid of the they say here say rubbish..
I had faith in my face to face and all was good but feel like half the information is missing.. from what I'm reading on the forums and news it's very common to need a MR then onto a tribunal.. I'm definitely fighting the award time.. only 2 years and a review into half way through I think.. I'm not going through all of this again in such a short time.. been on DLA for years and my situation hasn't changed since I was in middle school when I was diagnosed with aspergers..

poppy123456

Lots of people have awards they're happy with. Those that aren't happy and request the MR mostly have to take it to Tribunal, only 18% of MR decisions change.

The whole process can take over 1 year. Tribunal waiting times alone can be as long as 1 year because the backlogs are huge, in a lot of areas. Appearing in person will give you the best chance of a decision in your favour and they will want to hear it from you how your conditions affect you.

A diagnosis won't award you PIP, it's how those conditions affect your ability to carry out daily activities based on the PIP descriptors.

Thomas69

Not bothered how long the process is going to take.. I won't let this defeat me and I will win my case.. well that's the only thing keeping me going.. must say positive!! I do feel it's going to be my best chance in a tribunal so I can sit in front of them and go through it all..
Another thing that baffles me my cousin who transferred from DLA to Pip who's diagnosed with ADHD didn't even see the face to face assessor. Just outright refused. Had to sign a bit of paper for his mother to do the talking on his behalf.. low and behold was awarded Pip.. I feel like me being open and honest went against me.. but I guess everyone's siutation is handled differently..

poppy123456

You can't compare someone else's claim to yours. Everyone is affected differently by these conditions and you never get 2 people the same.

During an assessment if a claimant has an appointee then the appointee can speak on their behalf, i did for my daughter. All she did was sat there and said nothing.

Thomas69

I'm just saying knowing that one of my family members try to "cheat" the system got them a better award than I did ? crazy what people will do.. but I will fight ?

poppy123456

Very few people claim PIP fraudulently and you should never judge a book by it's cover.

Thomas69

My cousin was trying to tell me pointers and what to write to guarantee I got it but I wasnt going to lie and put things on...
What happened with your daughter's claim

poppy123456

No one is guaranteed an award.

My daughter claims Enhanced for both. To look at her you'd think there was nothing wrong with her but she has Autism, learning disability and social anxiety disorder. She claims it because of the way those conditions affect her. I sent in evidence from the learning disability team to prove how she's affected.

Thomas69

That's why I need to see the face to face assessment report.. my mother and sister done most of the talking for me and described all of my Asperger's traits and my anxiety issues.. all backed up with paper work. even the assessor agreed with me that I sent hell of a lot in but feels like the decision maker at dwp has skipped over it all and took out bits.. what annnoys me is that they give me 10 points for journey and planning but that's because of my anxiety and Aspergers with socializing side of it but only scored 2 points on that! So frustrating!!

poppy123456

You need face to face advice from either welfare rights or a law centre near you. It's extremely difficult to give advice on an internet forum.

Sometimes with evidence less is more. It's possible that sending in too much evidence some of it can contradict others, which can go against you. As already mentioned the decision maker relies heavily on the report. Even though the HCP said you sent a lot of evidence in, this doesn't mean that was a good thing.