Dla to pip for 16 year old. How do I know if he's getting a paper-based assessment?

jtee

Hi.  I may have posted this twice but I am new, sorry.
in November my son turned 16, he has asd/adhd and other complex neurological issues.
I received the letter saying apply for pip.  I rang dwp 4/12/20, received his forms and posted them back around 8/12/20.  I rang pip who said they’d sent his forms to atos. 17/12/20.
I am his appointee.
I included evidence saying he couldn’t handle a teleconference but I have heard nothing since and I am starting to worry.  Any advice?  How do I know if he is getting a paper based assessment?
has any one else had a similar experience?? 

 Thank you

jtee

Hello, I am new to this.  My son has asd/adhd and other complex neurological issues.  He tur16 in November and I had had to apply for pip.  I returned his forms straight away and I am his appointee.
I included evidence of his conditions and how they affect him.
I got through to pip who said they’d sent his forms to atos on dece17th but I have heard nothing since!!
should they be back with dwp by now?
he wouldn’t be able to cope with a telephone assessment and I sent evidence of this from school.
Can anyone advise me of timescales please?
so I received the letter saying apply for pip 3/12, I rang 4/12. I got his Forman’s filled it in 8/12. Dwp sent forms to atos 17/12.
how long now?
any advice please?

janer1967

Hi and welcome 

Sorry we wouldn't know if he is having paper based you would have to contact atos to ask 

I wouldn't worry too much there are long delays for assessments and as his appointee you would be able to speak on his behalf on a phone assessment 

Any further questions just ask 

janer1967

Hi replied on your other post 

jtee

Thank you.  His dla has an end date of 11/21 so I am not sure why I had to apply so early. Is it just because he turned 16?
it is a very stressful time.  I just wondered if atos let you know they are doing paper based or if they just go ahead and do it?

thanks

chiarieds

Hi @jtee - Welcome to the community & thank you for joining. As Jane says, it might take some time before an assessment is done, & you would just answer any questions. You should hear about such a phone assessment at least 7 days beforehand.

Did you ask for a paper-based assessment with the evidence you sent in saying your son couldn't manage a phone assessment? It may happen that a decision maker could just ring you to ask a few questions about anything they needed clarifying to complete an assessment based on the paper evidence you sent in. I don't think you get any warning of when this could potentially happen.

Altho your son has an end date of 11/21 for his DLA, this will end approx. when a decision on his PIP claim is reached, & the decision letter will advise when this will be, & the start of PIP payments if your son is awarded PIP.

I'm sorry you're finding this all so stressful, so please come & talk here any time.

chiarieds

Hi @jtee - I see you realised you posted twice, but that doesn't matter. Here are the replies: https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/76908/dla-to-pip-for-16-year-old

Cher_Scope

Hello and welcome @jtee

I've merged your two threads together so everything is in one spot, but no need to worry about posting twice.  It can be confusing to begin with navigating the community

I've also moved your thread to our PIP, DLA and AA discussion group which is home to chats like these.  Please ask away if you have any other questions and good luck.

jtee

No, I didn’t specifically ask for a paper based assessment but I sent evidence from school when they tried to carry out a basic speaking and listening , oral test.
my son started swearing, burping and ticking because he got so stressed!. (All oral skills I guess),
I also sent reports from Camhs saying how his condition affects him.
if they read the reports I thought they would just carry out paper based.
I was just wondering what 2020/2021 has brought other claimants and what their timescales are. Getting through to dwp can be tricky

thank you

janer1967

I would contact atos rather than DWP if his application is with them as DWP wont know anything till they get a report back 

Waiting times are different depending on your area so hard to predict and also with staff shortages and home working 

sarah1977

jtee said:

No, I didn’t specifically ask for a paper based assessment but I sent evidence from school when they tried to carry out a basic speaking and listening , oral test.
my son started swearing, burping and ticking because he got so stressed!. (All oral skills I guess),
I also sent reports from Camhs saying how his condition affects him.
if they read the reports I thought they would just carry out paper based.
I was just wondering what 2020/2021 has brought other claimants and what their timescales are. Getting through to dwp can be tricky

Hi jtee, my daughter turned 16 in nov. I rang up in dec, filled form in and returned. Ive heard nothing at all. Form had to be back for 1st of jan, otherwise payments would stop.i know they have recieved it as i sent it by recored and im still in payment. I got a letter last week for DLA telling me new rates from april, so im guessing they are still looking at it. 

jtee

Good Morning.  I am so stressed. I have been waiting since December 4th. 3 weeks ago I rang up for a copy of the report.  The guy I spoke to in Belfast said the decision had been made and it was enhanced.  

I rang today to chase up the report and the lady I spoke to said it hasn’t been sent and she couldn’t see the decision.
iam totally stressed out now.  She did say she would send the report and get a case manager to call me!!
has this happened to anyone else?  

sarah1977

jtee said:

Good Morning.  I am so stressed. I have been waiting since December 4th. 3 weeks ago I rang up for a copy of the report.  The guy I spoke to in Belfast said the decision had been made and it was enhanced.  

I rang today to chase up the report and the lady I spoke to said it hasn’t been sent and she couldn’t see the decision.
iam totally stressed out now.  She did say she would send the report and get a case manager to call me!!
has this happened to anyone else?  

Omg thats well bad.

My daughter had her assessment this morning. 

sarah1977

Do you have to request a cope of report?. If so how long do you wait before you do 

jtee

Yeah but don’t hold your breath.  I rang 3 weeks ago, chased it up today and they said they will send it but could take 2 weeks.

sarah1977

jtee said:

Yeah but don’t hold your breath.  I rang 3 weeks ago, chased it up today and they said they will send it but could take 2 weeks.

Thank you

jtee

I finally got a copy of my son’s report yesterday and it looks pretty favourable to him if I added up the ticks correctly.  It’s been 7 months now. Still no decision.
i am still getting his dla which is a godsend but 7 months is an awful long time considering he didn’t even need an actual assessment.
I can’t relax until i know.  For everyone out there taking their 16 year old from dla to pip. Fasten your seatbelts, it’s a long journey.
will I continue getting dla until his dla end date or does the pip take over? Do you lose out in the interim or is transition seamless?  It surely can’t go on much longer!?
It is an extremely frustrating and stressful process and if really shouldn’t be!
there should be a timescale pip adhere to in my opinion.

chiarieds

That sounds hopeful with your son's assessment report @jtee - did you add up the ticks for each component separately? If awarded PIP, as mentioned above, this will continue until a decision is made (not until his current end date for DLA). I can't remember if DLA is paid in arrears, but, if I remember my own claim migrating from DLA to PIP correctly, I think my DLA continued for 4 weeks, & then PIP started. However, your decision letter will give you the dates for these.

sarah1977

@jtee thats great news. Im currently waiting fot my daughters report. Hopefully it wont be long until we both have our decisions 

jtee

Well folks, the ball started rolling with my son’s claim on December 4th 2020. I know there’s a pandemic and staff are working from home, isolating or whatever but the virtue of patience has its limits.  Let’s hope we all hear very soon.

sarah1977

This morning recieved my daughters decision. Enhanced mobilty, no care, she was 2 points shorts. Im going to do a MR, Does anyone know where i send it to. Thanks x

janer1967

Hi there 

Sorry the outcome isn't what you expected 

The details of how to send Mr should be in your letter or send to address on letter 

Make sure you do it in writing and not over the phone as they suggest in the letter as you are relying then on the call handler putting everything down 

Putting it in writing gives you more time to get down all you want to put 

sarah1977

@janer1967. Thank you, i got the MR form from the internet, ive filled it in, i wasnt so sure if i just need to send it back to the address on the decision letter.  Im a bit confused with it all. Ive been recieved dla for my daughter for 6 years always got middle rate care and low mobilty she has epilespy which is not totally controlled by medication. So was a bit suprised at there decision. In the last 12 months she has had a few seizures whilst we have been out and about which has resulted is her needed to go to a&e as she has injured herself, the last one being having her head glued,  so i get why she has been awared the mobilty part. The care part is what i dont get, she only got 2 points for preparing food as she can use a mircowave, im no expert but i would have thought she would of got 4 points as she needs supervision to prepare a meal. As she can not use sharp knives to chop veg etc, whithout being supervised, if u getbwhat i mean.
Bathing was another one which she only score 2points.
No consdieration was taking into after she has a seizure, currently she is have 2-3 grand mal tonice clonic seizures a week. Her recovery after can be up 2 48hours after, all she does is want to sleep, and is not with it probably. Then i  actually need to wash her and take her to use the toilet..
Sorry for the long winded reply, but its done my head in. I know MR have a liw acceptence rate , i ll start preparing my apeal now i think

jtee

Hi Sarah 

sorry to hear about the decision.  What’s your time frame?  I have now been waiting just over 7 months!! The report looks hopeful but I can’t relax until I know.  Ringing up has just met with a brick wall apart from the 1st guy I spoke to in Belfast several weeks ago.
Good luck with your mr

janer1967

@sarah1977

Yes send it to address on letter 

Try not to compare dla and pip they are different with different criteria 

I'm no expert on epilepsy but maybe @woodbine can help you as he has lots knowledge about it 

sarah1977

@jtee Put claim in december. Telephone assessment was 28th june, i rang up the week later for a copy of the report( ive still not recieved it) decision letter was dated 12th july.
Id ring up and ask them the wait game is a killer. I found some are really helpful and some are really rude 

sarah1977

@janer1967. Thank you.
Any advice from @woodbine would be great.
Thank you

jtee

You are on a very similar time scale to me. Hopefully, I will know soon.  Ringing them up is very stressful  and time consuming and I think the post actually walks because a week is a long time.
I guess the letters sit around in someone’s inbox until the print and post guys get around to issuing it. The if it’s 2nd class post that’s another day or so. So on it goes.  The staff are probably still working from home so there’s less people putting letters in envelopes.  I think I am trying to self soothe here!
how long is your award for Sarah?  How does it say payments work?  I guess they will pay you whilst you’re appealing?

sarah1977

@jtee yes its very stressful, hopefully you will here soon.
Award was for 3 years.  
 My dla will run out on the 10aug, and pip will then start, and payment will start in sept its paid 4 weeks in arrears. 
Im assuming we will still get the mobilty part whilst MR or appeal is going through, since im asking then to reconsider the daily living part, but i have read somewhere that sometimes they look at all of the claim and they can change any part of the award.
Ive give up 2nd guessing how there minds work lol 

jtee

I suppose you have something to appeal.  We never actually got an assessment, just a nurse rang and asking a few clarifying questions but that was probably 7 weeks ago!  Like I mentioned, the copy of the report seemed favourable and the guy in Belfast said the decision was enhanced but the 2 people I have spoken to subsequently have said there’s no decision.  I really don’t want to commit another hour of my life on hold to be told nothing but there should be some kind of time scale.  My son’s dla has until November so I guess they aren’t hurrying but a letter would be good!
It all seems like a battle for people with disabilities and their carers🙁

jtee

Well,  I rang again.  40 minutes wait to be told exactly nothing again!! The gentleman who answered was very polite but just said it says awarded.  He can’t find any details or levels and doesn’t know why nothing has happened yet.
he said he’ll email the decision maker but thinks it’s because my son’s dla doesn’t expire until November!!
has any one else had this frustration and lack of clarity?
how are you getting on @sarah1977?  Can I ask if it was atos who did your daughter’s assessment?