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Doctor put wrong info on PIP form

Tegan

My GP has had the assessment form that PIP sent requesting further info since 1st May and only filled it in today and I have seen a scanned copy on my notes and there is so much wrong info on it and I don’t know what to do 😢
I was signed off with chronic pain, swollen legs and being unable to walk from 12th March 2021 and lost my job because of it but GP has said I have only had chronic pain since 29th September 2021!! I have been house assessed and had my home adapted so I can get upstairs and use shower and use a mobility walker to walk small distances, I have a blue disability badge but he has stated I have no problem with mobility. I have epilepsy which I got in a car accident in 1994 and GP has put 1993. I am reliant on the care of my family who visit weekly to clean the house, change my bedding, do shopping and help with small task I can’t do but GP has stated ‘Independent in all aspects of daily living’ The doctor who filled the form in is my registered doctor who hasn’t seen me in person once since I got ill I have seen about 12 different doctors but he has made decisions and statements that will decide the outcome of my PIP and it’s not looking very favourable 😢

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Comments

Alex_Alumni

Hello @Tegan I'm sorry to hear about what's happened, and how much it's distressed you. Have you be able to speak to your GP directly about your concerns with the form? I would hope they would check things through with you, before it's sent off?

If your application is still ongoing you can also send the DWP additional evidence after you've sent of the PIP claim form.

Your doctors statements are not the only thing the decision maker will be looking at, they will be looking at your own form, explaining how your conditions affect you, and if you have an assessment, this will also be taken into account.

Something that might help later on, if you felt you need to challenge the decision on your PIP when you receive it, is having a search on Advice Local for a professional adviser near to you. There's also the 'Find An Adviser' tool on the Turn2Us website, and you are welcome to call or email the Scope Helpline if you prefer.

Let me know if I've missed anything or if I can help further at all.

Tegan

Not been able to get hold of my GP but have emailed them but the form has already been sent. I have already sent lots of back up documents which will definitely red flag the start date of the chronic pain so I am guessing I will be assessed, only problem is GP has marked that I have no problems travelling to an assessment centre! I don’t drive but do have bus and train pass so just hope it’s near a bus of train station.
Thank for the advice of I need to challenge the decision further down the line, really hope it doesn’t come to that 🤞🏻

poppy123456

The dates of everything won't affect any PIP entitlement. Housework isn't considered in any of the PIP descriptors. Neither is your ability to work. I wouldn't worry too much about what was said by your GP

The daily living part of PIP includes things like washing/bathing, dressing/undressing, preparing/cooking food, budgeting decisions, managing toilet needs etc etc.

Also remember that your GP doesn't spend any time with you to know exactly how your conditions affect you so i don't know how they can comment on this.

If you haven't already looked at the PIP descriptors you can see them here. https://pipinfo.net/

Tegan

Had my assessment and have not be awarded pip because none of my conditions are on my records ‘as no evidence’ so sadly in my case despite having letters from consultants stating otherwise it clearly does matter what the doctor wrote or didn’t as the case is. I guess I have to just remain in pain, struggling to cook meals due to fatigue and pain, leaving in filth as have to choose between cleaning myself or house sometimes can’t do either, but because I can walk 5 minutes to my doctors with a mobility walker taking breaks, once every 6 months I’m rejected for pip. They then wonder why the suicide rate is so high for people with chronic pain.

calcotti

Tegan said:

.. I guess I have to just remain in pain, struggling to cook meals due to fatigue and pain, ..

You can challenge the decision.
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/benefits-introduction/problems-with-benefits-and-tax-credits/challenging-benefit-decisions/challenging-a-decision-by-the-dwp-or-hmrc/challenging-a-benefit-decision-mandatory-reconsideration/

poppy123456

Tegan said:

Had my assessment and have not be awarded pip because none of my conditions are on my records ‘as no evidence’

That will make no difference to any PIP claim. During my review last year all i sent was a prescription list and a letter from the OT explaining the adaptions i have at home. The rest was my anecdotal evidence and from that i had a paper based assessment.

If you think you can score enough of points needed for an award then challenge the decision and the first step is the MR, which you should put in writing. There's lots of threads on here regarding MR advice so have a search through.

Ross_Alumni

Hi @Tegan

Thanks for updating us on this thread, sorry to hear that you aren't happy with the outcome of the assessment. Will you be proceeding with challenging the decision? It can have a knock on your well-being when you receive a set back such as not receiving an award when you believe you should, but it's certainly worth pushing on with it if you think you should be entitled. If you think you might benefit from speaking with somebody about your claim, you can get in touch with Citizens Advice or enter your postcode into Advice Local to see what benefit related support there is in your area. There are also plenty of useful information pages around too, such as the one shared above by calcoti.

Do you have any ongoing support in place to help you manage with daily tasks and your mental health? I realise it's been a while since we last were in contact with you via email, so just wanted to check in with you about that.

In your opening post, you mentioned the support of your family who come over once a week, which I'm sure you appreciate massively, but have you considered any other forms of support to help you with some of those common daily tasks that you struggle with? It's good that you were able to have your house assessed and that that lead to some adaptations being made and equipment provided.

Tegan

I don’t have any ongoing support. My family do still occasionally visit but with holidays and lives it’s getting less. Just gone 7 weeks without help and 3 days I went without food as I couldn’t get out. I’m in bed so long sometimes I get sores and bleed from where I have not realised I have been to the bathroom as it’s got so bad I don’t always know it’s happened. I have to sometimes shower fully dressed to clean the mess but don’t have the energy to wash the bedding for hours. I’m embarrassed and ashamed but have not help. I’m trying so hard to be positive and I run a Instagram page and people say what an ‘inspiration’ I am for disabled people 🙄 so I can’t have a mental breakdown but I am really really struggling as I just don’t know how to cope. I’m a widow, I’m alone, I have poor mobility, chronic fatigue and pain and it’s taking all my energy just to stay alive.

ShirleyW

Are your family aware of how difficult life is for you?

It might be hard to admit it to them but I am sure they would help more if they knew.

Are you far off State Pension age? Attendance Allowance is much easier to claim if you are.

Tegan

Yes they know, but they are in their 80s themselves so can only do so much. I’m sadly no where near pension age yet 😢