DLA TO PIPS worried sick about tribunal

Hello Jonny @jonnytyler and a warm welcome to the community. We're very glad to have you with us.
There are enough awful reports around to make anyone profoundly worried about an upcoming tribunal, but bear in mind that the only reports one gets to hear about are the ones that have gone wrong. Sometimes it skews the picture a bit.
I'm adding my 'vote' to Charlene @hartill77's comment, too. The more you can tell us about your condition, your situation and what has been going on, the more easily we may find ways to help you. Scope has a lot of expertise when it comes to this kind of work and you are entirely among friends here There's no hurry from our side, no pressure, but the more you can tell us the better we can be of assistance.
Warmest best wishes to you,
Richard

Hi jonnytyler and welcome

From a fellow COPD sufferer, tribunals are not as scary as most people think

Appeals do not have to be scary

Many people, having gone through the assessment process, then the Mandatory Reconsideration are still let down by the system.
In order to get justice and the award they deserve, the final stage is to appeal to a tribunal.

Usually, a tribunal is a panel made up of a judge, a doctor and a disability specialist. This is an independant panel, given the task of looking at all the evidence from both parties, and come to an unbiased decision. In many cases, the panel will want to clarify with the claimant some of the evidence, or give the claimant the chance to explain.

If you are able to attend the hearing this is more easily achieved, however to some, the accumulated stress makes this impossible and a hearing can be held based just on the paper evidence with out the need to attend. It is also possible now to request a telephone or skype hearing

In all cases, the judge will notify you before the hearing if he believes that the current award is unsafe, which means that you may lose points and your current award. If this happens you do have the option to withdraw your appeal and keep the award you have.

some great advice from one of our esteemed members

1) Concentrate wholly on what you were like on the date of claim.

2) There are no “trick” questions. Tribunals are usually listed 20 minutes apart so, apart from the appeal papers, they need questions which cut across lots of functions. So the car question is brilliant because it indicates grip; mobility; dexterity; the ability to do something repeatedly; concentration and stamina. Instead of thinking negatively about such stuff think about what they’re getting at and your answers will be much better and more detailed. Similar questions include whether you’ve been on holiday recently. It feeds into mobility (getting across an airport); stamina; the ability to cope alone; the need for aids and appliances.

3) There are no set rules or order for a hearing beyind the requirement that it must be seen to be fair. 

4) Watch the judge’s pen. All three members may take notes but only the judge writes a record of proceedings. If you don’t want them to miss anything then remember that they can’t write as fast as you can speak, so watch their pen and slow down. Don’t worry about going too slow. They will tell you if you do.

5) Never interrupt any tribunal member. It is perfectly okay to challenge them provided it’s not rude or aggressive. However, think about whether what you’re challenging them on is directly related to points. If it’s not then better to focus on points. This is especially important because loads of people second guess the demeanour of tribunal members as determining whether they are pro or against and it’s largely nonsense. An aggressive, challenging member may well just be a poor communicator and wholly on your side right up to the point you challenge them etc.

6) Get yourself a representative and travel to the venue by whatever means makes you feel comfortable. It’s only ever an issue if you don’t explain what you did in full and if doing so contradicts your other evidence in some way for daily living and /or mobility.

7) Same goes for clothes. You need to wear whatever makes you feel comfortable and relaxed. If you’re not relaxed then the likelihood of you presenting well are much reduced. Dressing down is not a good idea unless that all you can afford. A person who feels naked without make-up or a suit abd tie will similarly be over stressed if they try to pretend they’re in their comfort zone dressing down. 

8) Other people’s tribunal experience can be valuable but it’s just that. Their experience. If they lost then it’s the tribunal to blame. If they win they everything they did is why they won and what you must do. The truth is usually very much in between.

9) Know your case. What points are you going for and why. What’s your evidence? “The HCP was a liar” is neither evidence nor a winning strategy. Also, know the appeal papers. What’s where. 

10) Do not be tempted to claim you’ve worsened since the date of claim. That’s a recipe for a failed appeal and an invitation to make another claim. Even if you have got worse always concentrate on your date of claim and what you were like then.