PIP light touch review.

LemonAid
LemonAid Community Member Posts: 8 Listener
in PIP, DLA, ADP & AA

Hello, I am an appointee for my daughter. 10+ years ago she was moved from DLA to PIP, this resulted in a reduction in benefits. She received 8 points in communication and no other points. I did try an over the phone mandatory reconsideration after reading the assessors report but got nowhere. I did not go through with an appeal just planned to get help and do better when review was due. The assessors report had recommended ongoing however she was only given 2 or 3 years. I finally received a review, but it was just an AR2 light touch form I ticked no change as nothing has changed I did include up-to-date examples though as she was still in school when the original was completed.

This was not the review I was expecting, so how do I fix the issues of points that should have been awarded from other categories, what should I do?

Comments

  • Rachel_Scope
    Rachel_Scope Posts: 4,799 Online Community Team

    Hi @LemonAid and welcome to the community. Can I ask if you have already sent the review form back? Ideally, you would send evidence that shows how your daughter meets the criteria for each descriptor and explain that you feel that the points were not awarded correctly. They can then take these into consideration.

  • LemonAid
    LemonAid Community Member Posts: 8 Listener

    Yes, sent it back a month ago. I do not even remember what all the questions were on the original form, should I find the questions and send the answers in.?

  • Rachel_Scope
    Rachel_Scope Posts: 4,799 Online Community Team

    There are a couple of options:

    1. You could send in additional evidence for them to look at. Just make sure that you put the National Insurance number at the top of each page.
    2. Or you could wait to see what the outcome is and then appeal it if you are awarded the same or less.

    Here's a list of the descriptors and points that you can use to write your evidence: https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/personal-independence-payment-pip/pip-points-system I would focus on the descriptors and write new answers that reflect her current condition.

  • LemonAid
    LemonAid Community Member Posts: 8 Listener

    Thank you.

  • Rachel_Scope
    Rachel_Scope Posts: 4,799 Online Community Team

    You're very welcome. Please let us know if you have more questions or want some support 😊

  • LemonAid
    LemonAid Community Member Posts: 8 Listener

    Received daughters pip award, they have decided her award will stay the same. Next review 10 years. 

    My daughter is a profoundly deaf, BSL user. She does not have regular medical appointments as nothing can be done, so medically there is very little evidence. The claim is about how it affects her, but they seem to ignore everything I write or say.

    How would I go about appealing this as I guess there would be no new assessors report?

  • Mary_Scope
    Mary_Scope Posts: 5,692 Scope Online Community Children and Family Specialists

    Hi @LemonAid

    I'm sorry you didn't get the outcome you wanted and they ignored what you wrote. It's very stressful when that happens. You can ask for a mandatory reconsideration where they will look at the reward as a whole again.

  • LemonAid
    LemonAid Community Member Posts: 8 Listener

    I asked how they made there decision, they confirmed they used the original assessors report even though I had already told them about the inaccuracies. I asked if they could send me a copy of the form that was originally completed. They have also sent the assessors report, I have never seen it before I think they must have just sent me the notes when I originally asked. Having never seen a report before I had no reason to think something was missing.

    There are some serious errors on this report, it states she has completed functional level Maths and English, this is not true. She has never passed entry level which she took in college and failed. It states that as she passed this there is no reason she would have difficulties with complex budgeting or maths and would have no difficulties reading a map or understanding 2 lines of complex written information.

    At school and college she had 2 helpers, a reader to translate English to BSL and a writer to write it down in English, she was assessed many times for dyslexia, but they could not complete the tests due to her limited vocabulary. The report says no learning disability diagnosed. She also got zero points on engaging with face to face as apparently she smiled at the assessor when she entered.

    I tried contacting my local citizens' advice, but my postcode is not covered for funding so they can not help me, I do not know what to do they are basing there decisions on an assessors report that is wrong and ignoring what I tell them.

  • Kimi87
    Kimi87 Community Member Posts: 9,052 Championing

    You need to submit the MR as advised, highlighting the errors with the report.

    Some decisions are overturned at this stage but not many, the next step is sn independent appeal tribunal where the success rate is much higher.

    This link might help you find alternative assistance to the CAB that you tried. https://advicefinder.turn2us.org.uk/

  • LemonAid
    LemonAid Community Member Posts: 8 Listener

    Have already done an MR, at least I know now why it failed. Everything I say is contradicting the assessors report. Already looked on turn to us, there is nothing assessable here. I could try another MR, but I think I need legal help as when I asked for the assessors report last time they never sent me this, if I had this report I would have known what the problem was.

  • Kimi87
    Kimi87 Community Member Posts: 9,052 Championing

    As the MR was unsuccessful, the next step is to take your case to an independent appeal tribunal

    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/appealing-against-a-benefit-decision/

    If you want legal advice then there might be a local solicitor who offers a free session lasting 30 minutes.

  • LemonAid
    LemonAid Community Member Posts: 8 Listener

    Not wanting an appeal, this is legal I had to do the MR over 11 years ago without the info I had asked for. I could only go by the written report which said she had excellent maths, which puzzled me and during the reconsideration I pointed out that the only maths question she was asked via an interpreter was, if she had a pound and bought a can of coke for 35p how much change would she have? She was given 3 attempts and got them all wrong. A major mistake has been made and all the other questions and decisions, have been based on a major error, I have only just this afternoon been made aware of the mistake.

  • LemonAid
    LemonAid Community Member Posts: 8 Listener

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