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Why am i called in for an assessment?

mrbuttons

Hi everyone i hope this is the right setion of the forum for this question apologies if its not.
I have a number of long term health conditionds including fibromyalgia and all the pain and fatigue that goes with it, arthritis, cardio vascular problems and hypertension. also anxiety, depression and PTSD. I am also recovering from a stroke. I had an assessment in my home about 3yrs ago and was awarded esa (support group)and Pip (with the severe mobility /disability component) for an 'ongoing period'. I wasnt expecting an other assessment when i filled in the form about 6 wks ago because my condition hasnt improved, in fact the pain has worsened. So anyway i have an appt in a town 20 miles away. In 2wks.
Im curious to know why i have to go for the face to face assessment. Could it be that my responses on the form do not match what was on my previous form or were my responses borderline to qualify for benefit? I know nobody can say definitively but i wonder why they didnt just go on what i put on the form.
Does anyone have any ideas or similar experience?

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Comments

poppy123456

Hi,

Most people have to attend another face to face assessment during a review. It’s rare to have a paper based assessment. All ESA awards are ongoing but that doesn’t mean you’ll never be reassessed. It just means it’s ongoing for as long as you’re entitled to it.

Once you’ve had the assessment ring DWP and request a cope of the assessment report, this will give you some idea what the decision is likely to be because they mostly go with the report. Your ESA will continue until a decisions been made.

I assume you sent evidence to support your claim? They very rarely contact anyone for this, the onus is on you to make sure it’s sent to support your claim.

good luck.

mrbuttons

Thanks Poppy123456,
i havent sent any evidence,didnt know it was necessary. I suppose i should ask my gp for a letter to take with me to the assessment. I was so anxious about completing the form i didnt think to send anything. Good to know that the assessment is pretty routine.
Thanks again for the info Poppy

poppy123456

No problem. A letter from a GP isn’t the best evidence to send or take because a GP very rarely knows how your conditions affect you. They will only know the basics like medication and diagnosis. If you have any other evidence then I’d advise you to take that instead.

stephenjohn

my wife has a f2 f this week ,it is a rearranged appointment because the D.W.P wanted her to travel almost 60 miles despite me telling them that she can’t travel far .....she has many chronic illnesses some going back 30 years or more ,one being N.E.S.S which means she has frequent blackouts ,fibromyalgia and arthritis. I think the sent the original just to see if she could travel that far ,I said if they sent an ambulance for her she could attend .......they make my blood boil ,bunch of twats

mrbuttons

I must admit that they seem to make things very difficult I spent 90mins on the phone last week trying to to arrange for the assessment to be recorded and trying to find out how Far is the parking spot from the entrance. Apparently there are no blue badge spaces nearby. How can they justify that at the actual assessment centre? This seems unnecessarily awkward and unhelpful to their clients to help expect them to walk to and from a multi storey car park when attending the assessment. Luckily my carer is coming with me I could not even think of going alone.
What type of evidence would be useful to take?
I actually think that I am over thinking this but I want to give myself the best chance of a positive outcome.

mrbuttons

so we went for my assessment and it started off with the recording equipment not being there despite my advance request to have it. the assessor was fine but I was immediately suspicious of how her written record might not be as I said. only time will tell. they focused on my mobility and pain which is fair because of that's my main issue. I am not very optimistic but it is out of my hands now.

Joanne_Alumni

Hi @mrbuttons,

Fingers crossed it will be ok!

You can ring in a couple of weeks and request a copy of your assessment. This gives you an idea of the outcome and might put your mind at rest.. You do need to bear in mind that they are not the decision makers though.

Let us know when you have a decision.

Adrian_Scope

Hi @mrbuttons. It must have been frustrating for the recording equipment not to be there despite your advance request.
Best of luck with the decision and if you do request the assessment report, let us know if you need any help deciphering it!

Chloe_Alumni

Hi @mrbuttons, I imagine this didn't feel like a very good start! I hope you are feeling okay now.

mrbuttons

hi @Chloe_Scope @Adrian_Scope @Joanne_Scope

thanks for the words of support everyone. i am trying to stop myself sinking into self-pity because I don't know the outcome yet. its the thought of losing my Motability car, the ability to afford my lovely carer which i pay for myself and at least 30% of my benefits that terrify me. I am just about coping with living costs and will be housebound and very isolated without my beloved little car. these sound like minor concerns when i think about the problems others are coping with. i am keeping myself occupied with reading my kindle and keeping up with the news.

poppy123456

If the assessment is for ESA, as that's where you've posted your question, then you won't lose your mobility car because that's part of PIP not ESA. ESA is the work capability assessment and they assess your ability to do any type of work.

mrbuttons

thanks poppy 123456, thats a massive weight off my mind. i think it was an ESA assessment because i filled in the esa50 form or something like that

poppy123456

You're welcome. Sounds like that's what it is. It's the Health assessment advisory service that do work capability assessments.

https://www.chdauk.co.uk/employment-and-support-allowance-esa

paffuto10

@stephenjohn
and @mrbuttons

Same problem here.
They arranged my PIP Renewal assessment in a building that I couldn't reach.

The nearest drop off point (taxi) was 70 metres away because there is a railing running all along between the side of the road and the building!!

Emailed our MP and explained they were paying me for walking 20 metres but asking me to walk 70 !!!

Next thing you know, I received a new appointment in a building with drop off point right outside the front door.!

Maybe they expect people to climb over the fence?!!

@mrbuttons
Good luck with the decision. Fingers crossed for you.

Chloe_Alumni

I hope @poppy123456 has been able to put your mind at rest a little @mrbuttons. I appreciate how daunting things like this can be. What book are you reading at the moment? I love reading things on my kindle.

mrbuttons

@poppy123456hi poppy im reading end times by Shane Carrow

i like apocalyptic stories because they examine how human beings respond to extreme situations. do they bring out our worst or best traits?

mrbuttons

paffuto10 said:

@stephenjohn
and @mrbuttons

Same problem here.
They arranged my PIP Renewal assessment in a building that I couldn't reach.

The nearest drop off point (taxi) was 70 metres away because there is a railing running all along between the side of the road and the building!!

Emailed our MP and explained they were paying me for walking 20 metres but asking me to walk 70 !!!

Next thing you know, I received a new appointment in a building with drop off point right outside the front door.!

Maybe they expect people to climb over the fence?!!

@mrbuttons
Good luck with the decision. Fingers crossed for you.

@paffuto10

they do seem to want to obstruct us as much as possible. i could only walk from the car to the centre by leaning on my carer and stopping every few steps or sitting on the wall. iam really disgusted at the lack of consideration. i suppose they think if we can walk that distance we are fit for work, despite how much pain it causes.

mrbuttons

good news everyone. my decision letter came today and i have been kept in the support group for ESA, with the severe disability premium. thank you all for your support and advice when I was in danger of melting down.

to everyone going for your assessment soon please don't just focus on the bad experiences, sometimes we have positive outcomes. don't give up.

poppy123456

mrbuttons said:

good news everyone. my decision letter came today and i have been kept in the support group for ESA, with the severe disability premium. thank you all for your support and advice when I was in danger of melting down.

to everyone going for your assessment soon please don't just focus on the bad experiences, sometimes we have positive outcomes. don't give up.

Great news! Just so that others are aware if they read this the severe disability premium can be paid on all Income Related ESA regardless of which group you're placed into and including assessment rate, providing all other eligibility criteria is met.

Totally agree with not just focusing on the bad experiences. Lots of people are successfully placed into a group without any problems.

Adrian_Scope

That's great @mrbuttons! Really pleased for you.