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How far back will LCWRA be backdated?

ucclaimant

I suffer from a mental disability and was on ESA since 2017 but moved on to UC July 2018. I have been required to attend job search meetings and provide a sick note each month since. I have explained that my disability is in the worst place it has been my whole life and my GP and I are finding these commitments to prepare for work are detrimental to my overall health. I have been asking for F2F WCA for 13 months and have been told I will be seen sometime in December. If I secure a place with LCWRA, how far back will this be backdated? I'm hoping to July 18 for being made to jump through hoops meant for able bodied persons and being penalised with sanctions for not being able to meet commitments I can't physically commit to with my disability. Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

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ucclaimant

I heard that it may be backdated form three months after the 'relevant period' (start of sick notes). So would that make it October 18 - date of payment ?

poppy123456

Hi,

A few questions before advice can be given. When you were claiming ESA which group were you in WRAG or Support Group? or were you just on assessment rate? and when did your ESA claim first start?

What was the reason you claimed UC?

Adrian_Scope

Hello @ucclaimant and welcome to the community.

If you were claiming ESA before you claimed Universal Credit and weren’t found fit for work, your ESA award should have moved over with you. If you’re able to answer @poppy123456’s questions we’ll be able to help you more.

ucclaimant

Hi, thank you @poppy123456 and @Adrian_Scope for replying so soon and I'm sorry I couldn't reply sooner.
My contributory ESA started paying in November 2017 at the basic rate £57.97pw. I was moved over to WRAG at £73.10pw and requested to be moved into the support group. However I moved to Universal Credit before being in the WRAG had any impact when my contributions ended.
I was placed in the Work Prep group and my concerns were dismissed by my work coach and I have been made to attend appointments and provide sick notes since the claim started. My coach dismissed that I had eligibility for other benefits and maintained that I had to attend frequently.
Your messages and a recent sanction prompted me to call UC for the information you asked for and to tell them about the issues I'm having in my grouping. I was informed that my ESA claim should have followed me to my UC. I shouldn't have had to attend meetings or provide sick notes or prepare for work. It was escalated and sanctions were removed and they promised to refund the deductions. They also said I would be put into an limited capability group by next week and any back payments due would be issued.

Is it more likely they will put me in LCWRA than LCW? When should I expect the claim to be backdated to?

poppy123456

Hi,

As you were in the WRAG when you were claiming ESA then it will be LCW you'll be given because that's the same as WRAG. You'll need to be re-assessed to be given LCWRA.

As your ESA claim started after April 2017 when the changes took place for those placed into this group then your UC amount will remain the same as you're receiving now. They should refund you anything they owe from the past sanctions.

If when you're re-assessed the decision is LCWRA then you'll receive the extra £336 per month from the date the decision is made.

ucclaimant

They escalated the decision to a decision-maker. They said they are unsure which it will be because, they agreed, I was wrongly in WRAG and should have been in the support group.

If the DM finds in favour of LCW because of me transitioning from WRAG, can I appeal this based on the fact I was wrongly categorised? And If they do decide on LCWRA will that be backdated and if so how far?

ucclaimant

I see this on lots of forums: (2)b says: ” The relevant period is the period of three months beginning with–...the first day on which the claimant provides evidence of their having limited capability for work in accordance with the Medical Evidence Regulations.”
I have provided medical statements for my condition and sick notes consistenly since 2017. Does this count for anything here?
Sorry for the jumbled questions. Want to get my head around it all so I can make informed decisions next week when the decision comes back.

poppy123456

If you're given LCWRA then it will be paid from the date of the decision because you were previously in the LCW group. It's confusing when starting different threads with the same question.

You can request a copy of the assessment report to be sent to you, this will give you some idea what the decision is likely to be because they mostly go with the report.

I also answered on your other thread.

ucclaimant

I'm sorry I don't usually use forums I'll try to keep my tangents on the same thread in future

Thank you for clearing that up I'm just confused because I've never been in either limited group but they've recognized they wrongly had me in WRAG and UC work group.

Thankyou for the advice I'll make sure to request any reports. I haven't actually had an assessment for LCW. I had a ESA assessment the last week of my claim before I transitioned but I didn't hear anything back.

Ill see what they say when it comes back from the DM and come back to the forums if I need advice going forward. Thanks again for the replies.

poppy123456

No worries. I don't understand what you mean by wrongly put you into the LCW/WRAG group. If you thought the decision was wrong at the time you should have requested the Mandatory Reconsideration. As you didn't do this, then once the decision is made this time, if it's LCWRA then you'll receive the extra money in your next payment.

If it's still LCW then you'll have 1 month from the date of the decision to request the MR, if you think you should be in the LCWRA group. Hopefully the decision will be made soon, once it's made it will be uploaded onto your journal.

ucclaimant

I was placed in WRAG ESA and then UC Work Group. As of this moment I am in neither LCW or LCWRA. The DWP recognised that this was a wrong decision and told me I would be put in a limited capability group moving forward and the relevant backdate made to reflect that. They recognised I had made requests for support that weren't made available to me and that I should have been given alternative grouping based on my capability. They commented that RA would apply and I would most likely be given that category as I should have been in ESA Support Grouping and there is no potential for me to take part in any work preparation or 'related' activities.
Fingers crossed I find out either way soon so I can move on to whatever the next step is

poppy123456

As you're no longer in a group then i'm assuming you were found fit for work and have requested the Mandatory Reconsideration (MR), is that correct? If so have you had the decision on the MR yet?

Sorry for the questions but it's not clear why you are no longer in the LCW group.

ucclaimant

Not quite sorry. Currently in the interim until next week I am in the UC working group. I was in ESA working group before that. I have never received any additional LC rate through either benefit.

I have been signed off indefinitely since mid-2017. During my ESA claim I was dismissed by my work coach that my disability meant I wasn't suited to the WRAG grouping. When I moved to Universal Credit I was put in the Working group and had the same issue.
I provided sick notes and medical statements to corroborate my disability but I wasn't put forward for any assessments. I have never during this time received Support rate, LCW or LCWRA despite my requests for assessment.

I spoke to the DWP (Thursday 22nd) after being sanctioned for non attendance- I wasn't able to commit physically to the commitments anymore. They informed me over the phone that all my sanctions would be reversed and they decided that I really did not have the ability to work or prepare for work in any capacity. They apologised as I wasn't required with my disability to attend weekly meetings, prepare for work and provide in person sick notes as I was not fit to do so.

They have referred me to a decision maker to remove the sanctions and place me in a limited capability group (I have never been in one but they recognised I should have been in one all along, in ESA and UC both.) It can be either LCW or LCWRA and there will be a relevant backdate dating to my first sick note.

poppy123456

Ok, i think i'm beginning to understand now. The reason why you never received any additional money when you were claiming ESA in the WRAG is because i assume that your ESA claim started after April 2017 and those that are placed into the WRAG won't receive any extra money for being in this group.

When you transferred to UC your ESA award was honoured and you were placed into LCW, which is the same group as you were in for ESA, so no extra money if your claim started after April 2017.

You will only receive extra money if you're placed into the LCWRA group, if you remain in the LCW group you won't receive any extra money.

As you were in a group, no fit notes were needed but because your condition had got worse your work coach should have referred you for another work capability assessment but this didn't happen. If it had happened then you would have been sent another work capability assessment form to fill in and return along with all your evidence. You would have most likely needed another face to face assessment by the health assessment providers and once the report was written it would have been returned to DWP for a decision maker to make a decision based on that report.

If the decision is LCWRA then you'll receive the extra £336 per month in your payments but usually this isn't backdated because you were in LCW group previously. Usually they pay you the extra LCWRA amount from the date the decision was made to place you into that group.

If you're placed into this group and you receive backdated money then i'll be very surprised. I hope they do lift those sanctions though and pay you back any money you're owed because of the sanctions.

Good luck with the decision.

Chelseamorgs5

Hi I needed help I've been claiming universal credit for about a year I've recently gone sick handed in my first sick note in August but the date on the sicknote was from the 2nd of June until further notice, I've been awarded my extra element which will commence from 21/01/2021 to 20/02/2021 which I accept but shouldn't I get a back pay either from the date I put my sick note in or from the date my sick note originally started from which was the 2nd of June?

poppy123456

Chelseamorgs5 said:

Hi I needed help I've been claiming universal credit for about a year I've recently gone sick handed in my first sick note in August but the date on the sicknote was from the 2nd of June until further notice, I've been awarded my extra element which will commence from 21/01/2021 to 20/02/2021 which I accept but shouldn't I get a back pay either from the date I put my sick note in or from the date my sick note originally started from which was the 2nd of June?

Hi and welcome,

There's a 3 full month assessment period for the waiting time before the LCWRA element is paid. It will depend on the dates of your assessment periods and when you reported your health condition because you can't usually backdate a fit note when claiming UC.

Chelseamorgs5

I reported my condition on the 10th of August which was accepted, I received my decision which was lcwra and have now been told my element will be awarded from the 21/01/2021 to the 20/02/2021 will I reive any back dated payment during this time or get nothing and just have to wait for the extra mo ey each month in Jan?

Chelseamorgs5

2021****

poppy123456

Chelseamorgs5 said:

I reported my condition on the 10th of August which was accepted, I received my decision which was lcwra and have now been told my element will be awarded from the 21/01/2021 to the 20/02/2021 will I reive any back dated payment during this time or get nothing and just have to wait for the extra mo ey each month in Jan?

What dates are your assessment periods? If you don't understand what i mean then it will depend on what date you first claimed UC a year ago because the date you claim determines your assessment period dates. You won't receive any backdated money because you only reported the health condition in August.

Chelseamorgs5

I first claimed, Assessment period: 21 November to 20 December 2017

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