My daughters pip was turned down

gibbie

My daughter is a recovering heroin addict . She injected for ten years , as well as taking valium and other things
At school she was under a child sociologist and diagnosed with ADHD. To cut a long sad story short ,she has been on DLA for about 9 years , the drugs has left her paranoid agitated and depressed . She does not socialise and finds it difficult to follow commandes and to remember things I handle all money which is in a special account in my name . The assessor said she understood what was said spoke canhandle her on affairs and read and understand difficult things . The only words the assessor said to her was "are you a dirty girl " my daughter is not a retarded person she has mental health issues .

poppy123456

HI and welcome,

Your next step is to request the mandatory reconsideration (MR) and you have 1 month from the date of the decision to do this. You should put it in writing stating where you think she should have scored those points and your reasons why. Adding a couple of real life examples of what happened the last time she attempted that activity for each descriptor that applies to her.

If you have a copy of the assessment report and there's lies/contradictions told by the HCP then you should avoid mentioning any of those. DWP/Tribunal won't appreciate you mentioning any of those. Any complaints should be sent to the health assessment providers.

It's worth remembering that DLA and PIP are different and they have different criteria. PIP isn't awarded based on a diagnosis, it's how those conditions affect your ability to carry out daily activity based on the PIP descriptors.

If you didn't send evidence to support her claim i'd advise sending it with the MR letter because they rarely contact anyone for this.

Most MR decisions remain the same so she'll very likely have to take it to Tribunal. Appearing in person will give her the best chance of a decision in her favour. The only downside is that waiting times for hearings are huge across most of the country. Lots of people are waiting a year for a hearing date. Add this onto the waiting times for the MR and it could be well in excess of a year.

I'd advise you to have a read of this link and it will give you a better understanding of the PIP descriptors and what they mean. It's very easy to score yourself highly if you don't fully understand the criteria.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/personal-independence-payment-assessment-guide-for-assessment-providers/pip-assessment-guide-part-2-the-assessment-criteria

Good luck.

paffuto10

Welcome to the community and so sorry to hear this @gibbie

What an extremely difficult time you and your daughter have had. 

And what a horrible thing for that assessor to say! 

We did win at MR stage (adult son in supported living) so put everything you can into it. 

Might also help if you can get MP's support (if he or she is a good one)?
That's what we did. 

Wishing you both best of luck and sending you strength for the next stage. 

Chloe_Scope

Welcome to the community @gibbie, I'm so sorry to hear that your daughter was treated this way! How are you both getting on at the moment?