Should I reapply for my daughters PIP? — Scope | Disability forum
Please read our updated community house rules and community guidelines.

Should I reapply for my daughters PIP?

AnnieV123
AnnieV123 Community member Posts: 1 Listener
edited August 2018 in PIP, DLA, and AA
Hi. My name is Annie and I am looking for help for my daughter who is 20. She has a rare chromosome abnormality which causes a lot of autistic expression, she also suffers from panic disorder, anxiety, mobility problems as her feet turn in and her legs hurt and to top it off, she got glandular fever when she was 14 and now suffers from chronic fatigue. When she was diagnosed with the 9p chromosome issue,at 12 we applied for DLA for her and got medium rate along with high rate mobility. She was under CAMHS and saw a geneticist and paediatrician. When she turned 16, they sent a nurse out to assess her for PIP and she was once again successful at medium rate for care and high rate mobility, in fact, they initially awarded low rate mobility and then changed it without us having to say anything. Eight months ago, we were sent a letter of review in which I said there was no change to her condition and they sent a lady out to check her out. The lady did no physical evaluation at all and said it was because ME changes so often and she assured us that she was confident that my daughter would continue receiving PIP.  She was turned down and lost all her privileges like free prescriptions and her blue badge which we never actually used, but it would have come in handy if she'd ever driven or gone out alone which she doesn't. I, as her representative, appealed the decision, but were once again turned down and she was worried about going to an appeal as she struggles with social situations and travelling is very difficult so she said not to worry about it. Part of the problem I feel is that she had been discharged from CAMHS and the paediatrician and the genetics in London and as she rarely leaves the house, she rarely sees the GP unless I go with her and most of her visits are over the phone now. We have got her GP to write a letter defining her conditions and she is going to see someone in adult mental health in September and we are going to ask for a letter from that person too. I know that she may be turned down if we reapply now so I'm trying to find out the best way forward. Any helpful hints or tips or contacts would be gratefully received. 

Comments

  • thespiceman
    thespiceman Community member Posts: 6,388 Disability Gamechanger
    Hello @AnnieV123   Pleased to meet you welcome.

    Thank you for sharing.  So sorry what has happened I feel for you and understand the situation you are in.  The difficulty and may I add the stress and anxiety.

    Many of our members have gone through the PIP assessment and all the issues and problems around it all.  Including myself.

    I am sure they will be in touch to advise as will a member of our team.  Please can I suggest contact our helpline for support and information.

    0808 800 3333

    Also may I add have a look at our benefit information and advice on Talk about PIP.

    Hope that helps.

    We are a friendly support community. Care and share.

    Lots of information, advice and support.  New friends.

    Ready to listen

    Please take and wish you a successful outcome.

    @thespiceman
    Community Champion
    SCOPE Volunteer Award Engaging Communities 2019
    Mental Health advice, guidance and information to all members
    Nutrition, Diet, Wellbeing, Addiction.
    Recipes
  • Chloe_Scope
    Chloe_Scope Posts: 10,586 Disability Gamechanger
    Hi @AnnieV123 and a warm welcome to the community! Thank you for taking the time to tell us about your daughter. You are able to appeal the PIP decision and information on this can be found on the Scope website. Also, it may be worth having a look at the PIP self- test online as this may give you a clearer idea of what award you could be expecting. There will be a lot of community members who can relate to you with this so please do get involved :) If you need anything else then please do not hesitate to be in touch!
    Scope

  • markyboy
    markyboy Community member Posts: 367 Pioneering
    Like a lot of people claiming PIP you list all her medical conditions and getting doctor's letters
    While it is ok to mention these the emphasis must be on how her condition affects her ability to carry out the descriptors laid out in the PIP criteria this is what gets you points not how many specialist you are seeing or how many times you visit your GP 
  • Liam_Alumni
    Liam_Alumni Scope alumni Posts: 1,101 Pioneering
    Hi @AnnieV123, how are you getting on? :)
    Liam
  • BenefitsTrainingCo
    BenefitsTrainingCo Community member Posts: 2,621 Pioneering
    AnnieV123,

    As Mike says, the first thing to look at is a challenge of the decision in which your daughter lost PIP. It sounds as if you went through the first stage (mandatory reconsideration or MR), but then your daughter decided not to appeal further. I completely understand this, but unfortunately it is often the only/best way to get the right result on a PIP claim. As far as I can see from the time scales, you are still in time to ask for a late appeal, explaining your daughter's concerns about the hearing but that she now understands this represents her best chance of getting benefit. 

    There is of course no harm in applying again, and certainly having doctor's letters is helpful, but there is no guarantee of success. In your situation I would suggest that you consider a late appeal now, because it is worth a try, and remember, your daughter can request a hearing based on the papers (ie she doesn't have to attend, though I have to say that her chances of success are much better if she does attend, & I would encourage her to do so). Meanwhile, as it will probably take several months for your request for a late appeal to be considered, and then for a hearing date to be arranged, you could still put in a further PIP claim once you have supporting letters (eg especially after you get a letter from adult mental health).

    Unfortunately though, no matter how good the letters it still possible to be turned down - but you can hope (very occasionally people don't have an assessment & the decision is made purely on the claimant's own evidence, but it's very unusual).

    Will
    The Benefits Training Co:

  • Yadnad
    Yadnad Posts: 2,856 Disability Gamechanger
    AnnieV123,

    As Mike says, the first thing to look at is a challenge of the decision in which your daughter lost PIP. It sounds as if you went through the first stage (mandatory reconsideration or MR), but then your daughter decided not to appeal further. I completely understand this, but unfortunately it is often the only/best way to get the right result on a PIP claim. As far as I can see from the time scales, you are still in time to ask for a late appeal, explaining your daughter's concerns about the hearing but that she now understands this represents her best chance of getting benefit. 

    There is of course no harm in applying again, and certainly having doctor's letters is helpful, but there is no guarantee of success. In your situation I would suggest that you consider a late appeal now, because it is worth a try, and remember, your daughter can request a hearing based on the papers (ie she doesn't have to attend, though I have to say that her chances of success are much better if she does attend, & I would encourage her to do so). Meanwhile, as it will probably take several months for your request for a late appeal to be considered, and then for a hearing date to be arranged, you could still put in a further PIP claim once you have supporting letters (eg especially after you get a letter from adult mental health).

    Unfortunately though, no matter how good the letters it still possible to be turned down - but you can hope (very occasionally people don't have an assessment & the decision is made purely on the claimant's own evidence, but it's very unusual).

    Will
    It also depends on the DWP if they wish to object to the late appeal being heard.

Brightness

Do you need advice on your energy costs?


Scope’s Disability Energy Support service is open to any disabled household in England or Wales in which one or more disabled people live. You can get free advice from an expert adviser on managing energy debt, switching tariffs, contacting your supplier and more. Find out more information by visiting our
Disability Energy Support webpage.