My ADHD Personal Independence Payment argument and 'Hi Guys'

PaulyT73

Hi everyone,

My name is Paul. I joined the other day particularly to try and contact a member that succeeded in claiming Personal Independence Payment for her husband who has ADHD?

However? As I continue to research the condition and learn more and more about myself? The more fuel I realise that I have at my disposal in order to argue my case and ultimately, hopefully succeed!?

If I succeed? I then plan to help as many other people as I possibly can?

PaulyT73

Hi @Teddybear12. Thankyou, and yes I plan to and definitely will.

janer1967

Hi and welcome to the community 

There is lots of info on this site about how to claim pip if you look in the benefits section 

Also lots of members with adhd here who also claim pip successful 

PaulyT73

Hi @janer1967 and thankyou for that info? Maybe you could direct me to the people who have been successful?

Thanks again..

poppy123456

As PIP isn’t awarded based on any diagnosis and we are all affected differently by these conditions, it’s impossible to compare someone else to yourself. 

What you need to do is concentrate on exactly which descriptors you think apply to you and your reasons why. Include a couple of real world examples of exactly what happened the last time you attempted that activity for each descriptor that applies. Lots of information and advice in the PIP/DLA section.

janer1967

I can't direct you to individuals you will need to look in the categories to find them but as poppy states every case is different as everyone is affected different 

martobluesman65

Hi Paul  I just had my assessment for PIP for ADHD  and failed  ,  so I am also looking for information on how to fight this,

martobluesman65

I did that during the telephone assessment and when I received the decision it was like they never listened , but I not surprised, PIP is not easy to claim there is more failure rates, but everyone that knows me was shocked, and disgusted, I am looking for information,  I am going to fight this,

poppy123456

martobluesman65 said:

I did that during the telephone assessment and when I received the decision it was like they never listened , but I not surprised, PIP is not easy to claim there is more failure rates, but everyone that knows me was shocked, and disgusted, I am looking for information,  I am going to fight this,

The majority of people claim PIP successfully first time without any problems. The issue is, we just rarely hear the good stories because if someone's happy with their decision they have no questions to ask so we don't hear their story.

The assessors and the decision maker at DWP do not need to have any understanding of any conditions because PIP isn't awarded based on any diagnosis. It's the claimants responsibility to prove they qualify.

For those real world incidents you should give at least 2 per descriptor that you think applies to you. Include detailed information such as where you were, what exactly happened, did anyone see it and what the consequences were.

If you haven't yet requested the Mandatory Reconsideration (MR) then this is your first step. The most likely outcome of the MR is the decision will remain the same, if it does then it's Tribunal. You should put the MR request in writing stating where and why you think you should have scored those points and include the real world incidents.

martobluesman65

the problem with ADD is the lack of understanding,  when I read my PIP assessment the ignorance was shocking, I have to disagree with you, in my case there was too many assumptions, it felt the assessor made his own personal  judgement,  if you don't understand something like ADD how can you make an honest evaluation of the person who is suffering?  This is might shock you it's not about PIP being successful it's about stopping the ignorance of the condition that people have of ADD.  He question my intelligence my ability to write, etc, how in God's name can you base a decision based that I sound and speak intelligent.  I am not going to go into my assessment any further,  they advised on the form to call for Mandatory Consideration I will do that, I will look up all cases with decisions, I will take further up the food chain, if I win great fantastic but this not about winning but getting respect and understanding which many don't have when it comes to ADD.

poppy123456

This has been talked about to death here over the years. No understanding of any condition is needed because PIP isn't about a diagnosis. As we are all affected differently by these conditions it's your responsibity to expain exactly how your conditions affect you. If you don't give enough of detail then yes they will come to their own conclusions.

The best way to request the MR is in writing, this way you can explain where and why you think you should have scored those points. When you ring to request it how do you know the person on the phone is going to do this. If you give more detail on the phone how do you know the person is going to type what you tell them? You can also use this form. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/challenge-a-decision-made-by-the-department-for-work-and-pensions-dwp

martobluesman65

  thank you for your suggestions, but I move on from here, more or less presenting a case much like a court, I will do my research,

poppy123456

@Biblioklept Yes i agree with you but this still doesn't mean a decision maker and the assessor needs to have knowledge of any specific conditions.

poppy123456

martobluesman65 said:

  thank you for your suggestions, but I move on from here, more or less presenting a case much like a court, I will do my research,

When taking a benefits decision to Tribunal, you are not in court. Some hearings maybe held in a court building but they are nothing like a court and you're not on trial.

martobluesman65

I don't mean in the literal sense but in terms of presenting evidence ,   

prur

I’ve just had my rejection letter for my ADHD PIP claim. My first (& subsequent) reaction was/is to cry. I am so frustrated.
Like @martobluesman65, I feel like the assessor didn’t listen to a word I said or even read my form. She didn’t have a clue how hard I had to concentrate just to focus on what she was asking me. 
Having done a benefits & work (https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/pip-test-form) PIP self assessment test, I now know where I went wrong; I mistook being physically capable of and knowing how to do things with actually being able to do things; yes, in theory I can make a meal, eat nutritional food, take my medication, keep on top of my bills & invoices (I’m self employed) but in reality can I? No. Or not without prompting or coming up with routines to remind me anyway. When you live alone, there is nobody to prompt you.
How do we explain to people without AHDH or ADD, just difficult we find it to do things that should be simple? Just how debilitating procrastination really is for us? 

poppy123456

prur said:

Having done a benefits & work (https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/pip-test-form) PIP self assessment test, I now know where I went wrong;

The PIP self test is one of the most unreliable things to complete when applying for PIP, unless you completely understand the PIP descriptors and criteria, the majority of people don't. When completing this test, it's very easy to overscore and even underscore yourself.

poppy123456

JamieB86 said:

PaulyT73 said:

Hi everyone,

My name is Paul. I joined the other day particularly to try and contact a member that succeeded in claiming Personal Independence Payment for her husband who has ADHD?

However? As I continue to research the condition and learn more and more about myself? The more fuel I realise that I have at my disposal in order to argue my case and ultimately, hopefully succeed!?

If I succeed? I then plan to help as many other people as I possibly can?

Shouldn't it be about how it affects you and your experiences rather than what you read?

The thread is 5 months old and the OP hasn't been active since beginning of June.

Tori_Scope

Welcome to the community @jamieb86! How are you doing today? 

Many people find it more helpful to focus on their own experiences, and how their condition affects them- that's right

Are you applying for PIP at the moment?

Mikeb2102

  When you live alone, there is nobody to prompt you.

How do we explain to people without AHDH or ADD, just difficult we find it to do things that should be simple? Just how debilitating procrastination really is for us

That's exactly how I felt when I received my rejection letter. They determined that because I was able to maintain focus or be redirected that I am fine cooking and preparing food. I live alone so there is no one to redirect me. Also I was doing one thing at that time; having a phone conversation. Had that been dinner time I would have probably had some dinner in the oven, finished the phone conversation and forgot that I had put food in the oven. I told them that just because I don't have anyone to help that it doesn't mean I don't need help. They also said that because or medical evidence dated 9 months prior to my assessment (I did send them more recent medical evidence) that my mood had improved so they determined that I can make budgeting decisions and engage with others. The only person I engage with is my daughters mum. Apart from that i dont engage with anyone because i find it difficult. Not once have I ever looked at someone and thought "look at that happy man, I bet hes good with budgeting"

The PIP process is done like a one size fits all thing and people with mental health issues are all different. 

I've got my tribunal coming up in November. Hopefully I can prove that they were wrong in their decision

Alex_Alumni

I hope things go well for your Tribunal @Mikeb2102 if you need a hand with anything in the meantime, please let us know. 

You're completely right about how people with mental health issues are all different, as are those with physical impairments, in fact, all human beings. Sadly sometimes going through processes like this can be a little dehumanising.

Hopefully this community can act as a place of support for you, as many members are experiencing similar things. We wish you all the best for November