Minimum wait time for a decision 10 week?

vivienne1

I received a letter on Friday saying that they had all the information they needed to make a decision on my PIP. Because it was dated mid July I phoned to see if anyone had made a decsion in the interim and was told that because of backlogs "in my area" decisions are taking at least 10 weeks. Is this right? I dont understand, as a former civil servant, how someone can look at a file decide there's enough there to make a decision but not actually make the decision. Surely that's double the work? 

Is the figure of ten weeks correct? If it is that is shocking and will take the application into almost 7 months from start to finish. There must be some very desperate folk out there. 

poppy123456

Hi,

The time you were given is just a guide and nothing more. There's no timescales for any decisions. Backlogs is just part of the reason a decision can be delayed. The letter you received is just a standard letter that they send everyone but it doesn't really mean anything, decisions can still take 8 weeks after that letter.

wilko

Have you requested a copy. Of your assessment report,?  On receiving it you can workout what you're award may should be but you still have to wait for the official award confirmation letter. 

vivienne1

Hi I appreciate timings are a guide but he seemed very certain that I shouldn't expect to hear anything before then!

poppy123456

That will just be attitude of the person you spoke to. They have no idea of timescales because there isn't any. As wilko has advised, request a copy of the report.

Hopefully a decision won't be too long. Stressful i know but there's nothing you can do in the meantime.

vivienne1

Hi yes, I got a copy of my report early July. It's full of inaccuracies but CAB thought I would get standard rate for daily living and no mobility. The assessor seemed to think I was fine on the mobility questions and for some reason hasn't noted any of what I said(and wrote and covered in consultants letter) in answer to those questions. I was medically retired from the Civil Service and they have the OH and OT reports of what I can’t do. Showed the assessor yet she thinks I have no issues.

I just get frustrated at the lengths of time things take. I was a decision maker in another department and we had time targets to meet in getting the information and then once we had it all making the decision. If we didn't meet them all hell broke loose. The DWP seem to have an "it is what it is" attitude and it can take as long as we like...