Recording of pip assessments suspended

bristollad

Hi, i have recently filled in my pip renewal form, i put no change to all questions, the assesor rang me and told me i need to go for another assesmnet, i asked her to tell me why she thought i was lying, she told me she thought i was telling the truth so i asked i you think i am being truthful why are you sending me to another session of humiliation, could not answer, i called her a liar.

She then asked me if i would take part in a telephone assessment, i said no as i do not have the facility to record, she threatened to void my claim for non compliance.

I have had over the last 12 years 7 decisions go in my favour at appeal every time, the only way to prevent these guys from lying is to record and threaten them with private prosecution.

So i get a letter from capita saying that a telephone assessment has been booked for next friday, i did not agree to this.

I called the DWP to make a complaint as the only thing they can offer as a reason for another assessment is a contradiction and they said they will look into it.

They also said that because two copies can't be made that i can not make a recording as the assessor will not take part if she knows i am recording, they were also in agreement that another assessment just seems like it could be doing more harm than good.

I am waiting to hear from the DWP this afternoon!

poppy123456

HI and welcome,

As this is a renewal then most people would normal have another assessment, which is usually face to face. However, because of Covid19 the face to face assessments have been suspended and instead they are doing  telephone assessments. Paper based assessments will only be completely if there's enough of information to do this.  As they don't have enough then an assessment is needed.

I have to admit justing putting "no change" on your forms wouldn't have helped your claim at all. What would have been better is to fill out the forms with as much information as possible about how your conditions affect your ability to carry out daily activity based on the PIP descriptors.

I have no idea what will happen if you still refuse the telephone assessment.

bristollad

That so like a bit of a cynical trap, please tell us if there is any change, if no say no change.

That is what the form says as there was no change i put no change!

I sent them all the evidence from previous claim and as the dwp told me they already have reams(12year worth) that they should be able to make a decision without putting me through the stress of another assessment when the outcome will be the same.

They can not say they are calling me in for another because i am telling the truth, this also implies that the only way to not get put up for assessment is to not tell the truth!

Anyways it is the recording that i am worried about as without the recording they will literally say the opposite of what i tell them!

poppy123456

bristollad said:

That so like a bit of a cynical trap, please tell us if there is any change, if no say no change.

I disagree, sorry. Simply stating that there's "no change" then you can almost guarantee another assessment. On the CAB website it advises you to explain in detail, even if there's been no change.

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/sick-or-disabled-people-and-carers/pip/help-with-your-claim/help-with-your-pip-review-form/

You maybe lucky enough to have an honest HCP, it can and does happen. I've never had a bad HCP and had 3 PIP assessments and 4 work capability assessments.

I'd prefer to concetrate on the assessment, rather than worrying about recording it. Anyway, i wish you good luck.

janer1967

Hi i yend to agree with Poppy here you may not have had a change but it is always advisable to put as much detail as possible and treat it like a new claim.

By doing this you can sometimes avoid having to have another assessment which was what happened in my case 

I dont want to sound harsh but it is you applying for the benefit so compliance is the best option, I know they dont always go well and lots of people report inaccuracies and lies from assessors and the system is far from ideal but it is what it is 

johnnyy85

Hi bristollad when does your current award end ? 

bristollad

It was ment to end in june this year, they sent me a letter saying it was extended to Jan 2021, the day i got the letter informing me was the day they rang to say i needed another assessment.

johnnyy85

Good luck mate in what you do I’m in same boat except I did explain in forms my condition getting worse, my award runs out in August and just received extension till February in the post today 

mikehughescq

Forgive my bluntness but sometimes things just need telling as they are. 

The advice given thus far is spot on. There’s no such thing as a PIP renewal. Every time you are effectively making a new claim and the law is clear that on a new claim you have to show/evidence that you’re entitled. 

When you put “no change” you may as well write “I am not giving you any evidence” as that is effectively what you’ve just done. 

As with any new claim a lack of evidence will trigger a request from DWP to an assessment provider to do an assessment in order to gather that evidence. You gave them no other choice. If you decline to part in a telephone assessment then the only possible outcome for your claim is nil entitlement.

Yes, the DWP clearly have years of information but it appears to have completely escaped you that the information they have was clearly not what was needed else you simply wouldn’t have had to go to appeal 7 times in 12 years. It also seems to have escaped you that if that information was so great perhaps you should have retained some of it and put it in with your claim pack. 

There is absolutely a public law principle that an organisation must use what it has. However, that’s not a lot of use if the information itself is so uncompelling that it never results in the right award! Yours clearly never has. There is much to be learnt from that simple truth. Ergo the information is useless. Your awards have resulted from a tribunal hearing your verbal evidence and likely little else. This is something you now need to learn from. If you continue to do things the same way as you have for 12 years then... you will get the same outcome. That’s not a fault of the PIP process. That’s a failure of approach.

Similarly, I doubt your previous recordings were of much relevance. Challenging the credibility of a HCP report damages the credibility. It doesn’t get you PIP unless your other evidence builds a strong case. We can already infer your written evidence wasn’t sufficiently compelling and we know that you win at appeal. Ergo, back to your verbal anecdotes. 

I’ve no idea whether you have represented yourself for 12 years or been consistently represented by the same organisation. Either way a change of approach is needed. 

Finally, 7 awards in 12 years!!! With all due respect that’s rock solid evidence for a 10 year/ongoing award. Achieving that would remove 99% of your renewal/assessment stress. I’m going to guess it’s not crossed your mind to explicitly ask for a 10 year award.