who can I get to be an appointee for me in my tribunal?

moonieshines

Hey, I've just appealed the decision for my pip claim so now I'm looking at a tribunal whenever they get to me.

What evidence do I need and who can I get to represent me?

I finally have a diagnosis! My doctor completely missed the abnormality in my hips, saw a specialist and turns out I have hip dysplasia. Which is why I'm in so much pain all the time! But i cant help but feel so irritated that the pip people basically saying I was fine! A 20 minute conversation to evaluate ur whole life! Unreal! ? 

After my "interview with pip" I dont feel comfortable going to this tribunal without other representation and lots n lots of evidence.

Many thanks in advance.

moonieshines

Thanku hopefully someone will be able to help. X

poppy123456

HI,

Representation and an appointee are 2 different things. A person has an appointee when they are incapable of looking after their own benefit claims and this is usually for those who are mentally incapable or severally disabled. An appointee will be able to speak on your behalf.

A representative will present your case to HMCTS but they are not there to speak on your behalf. The panel will expect you to speak for yourself because the only person that knows how your conditions affect you is yourself. For representation you'll need to speak to an advice agency near you and ask them, The best place to start is here by putting your postcode into this link.

https://advicelocal.uk/ welfare rights or a law centre are good places to look for.

Evidence, should state how your conditions affect you against the PIP descriptors. Your submission to the Tribunal should state where you think you should have scored those points and your reasons why. Adding 2-3 real life examples of what happened the last time you attempted that activity for each descriptor that applies to you. Lots and lots of evidence is definitely not needed, more is often less because 1 piece of evidence could contradict another and the panel may not even read huge amounts of evidence.

Do be aware that PIP isn't awarded based on any diagnosis, it's how those conditions affect your ability to carry out daily activity based on the PIP descriptors.

Tribunal waiting times are huge across most of the country and lots of people are waiting as long as 1 year, some even longer than this.

Good luck.

moonieshines

Thanku all! this is really helpful. I'm terrible at all this. I'm not sure if I filled out the appeal properly now. But I'll just have to play it by here.

I cant believe how horrendous this whole process is. I almost just gave up but I thought no, they lied about a few things, so, I'm gunna at the very least set the record straight.

poppy123456

moonieshines said:

I cant believe how horrendous this whole process is. I almost just gave up but I thought no, they lied about a few things, so, I'm gunna at the very least set the record straight.

It's not about the lies because you can't prove what did or didn't happen during the assessment and you should forget about those, at least for the Tribunal. They won't be interested in any lies/contradictions that may have been told in the report, they will only be interested in where you think you should have scored those points and your reasons why. Adding a couple of real life examples of what happened the last time you attempted that activity for each descriptor that applies to you will also help.

Concentrating on the lies could harm your case.

moonieshines

poppy123456 said:

moonieshines said:

I cant believe how horrendous this whole process is. I almost just gave up but I thought no, they lied about a few things, so, I'm gunna at the very least set the record straight.

It's not about the lies because you can't prove what did or didn't happen during the assessment and you should forget about those, at least for the Tribunal. They won't be interested in any lies/contradictions that may have been told in the report, they will only be interested in where you think you should have scored those points and your reasons why. Adding a couple of real life examples of what happened the last time you attempted that activity for each descriptor that applies to you will also help.

Concentrating on the lies could harm your case.

Thanku, its 2 lies that she said that really bugs me and its probably not very relevant but she said I had one flight of stairs when I have 3 which I can prove and then when she said I can walk perfectly fine but I have a limp which anyone can see. But maybe I should not even mention it.

moonieshines

@poppy123456 should I start looking for a representative now or wait till I have a date for the tribunal out of curiosity?

poppy123456

Stairs aren't relevant because they aren't part of the criteria for mobility. For representation then start looking now because you'll want the rep to present your case, remember they won't speak on your behalf during the hearing. Use the link i posted above to see what's local to you.

moonieshines

Okay great thanku!

MobileGames

@moonieshines. You could say that you have difficulty in doing repetitive tasks because of the pain in your hips,which means that you have to take rests because the pain causes exhaustion and limited mobility,that you walk with a limp because the pain affects you being able to balance your body properly. Send the new evidence in to support this. Any last minute evidence may delay the hearing. The panel are independent from the dwp and they will want to know as much as possible about how your disabilities affect you in every day life. As for representation,Welfare Rights don't do appeal stage. Have you tried your local CAB for written representation? And then another CAB for possible representation on the day? As Poppy said,they can't speak for you,but they can present your case along with the facts in front of the tribunal. A bit like in court,only it's not a trial. 

poppy123456

MobileGames said:

 As for representation,Welfare Rights don't do appeal stage. Have you tried your local CAB for written representation? And then another CAB for possible representation on the day? As Poppy said,they can't speak for you,but they can present your case along with the facts in front of the tribunal. A bit like in court,only it's not a trial. 

In most cases it's the other way around. Welfare rights will represent but CAB won't. Lots of people who've posted on here have had representation from WR. We also have a WR adviser that sometimes posts and he represents people all the time.

MobileGames

@poppy123456. I was told by Springfield mind and Welfare Rights themselves when I rung them that they don't do appeal stage due to lack of funding. The CAB,not your local one do it in exceptional circumstances. They can provide written representation through a consent form which you can be obtained through your local CAB. I was told that when I went for my MR there. Representation in person is possible,but not always guaranteed. That's what my local CAB said.