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PIP assessment

swifty

hello everyone, never thought that I would ever need to do something like this, actually embarrassed at my situation. Little background info - woke up in January with a really sore stomach and back. Was admitted to hospital for 4 days where they ran blood/urine tests. Received a ultrasound on my ovaries where all was normal. Went for a CT scan, again all normal. I have been living with constant severe back pain since. Nothing found on MRI. Just went for another MRI of full spine and head and waiting for results. So been off work since January and take morphine tablets as well as liquid. On a bunch of other meds too. Everyone told me to claim PIP but only recently done it.

Went for my assessment today and truthfully was dreading it as I’ve read so many horror stories! Anyway the nurse who interviewed me was actually really nice. My issue is that she didn’t ask me to do any physical movements or exercises as she “could see I was in pain”. Has anyone else ever had this and is this a good or bad thing? This money is desperately needed as I have no pay now. So worried why she didn’t ask me to do anything and what she may put in report i.e refused to do anything.

Sorry for the long winded message but any help/advice/comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

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swifty

So got my letter through from dwp who have awarded me the standard rate for mobility. Basically £22 per week. Nothing for anything else even though I need help with everything! Rather disappointed but I guess better than nothing...

Yadnad

Username_removed said:

So challenge it.

And if no challenge is made the statistics will show that the award made is the correct one!

swifty

I don’t think I have the fight in me...just went through so many forms and interviews for esa. Still nothing found on last mri. 8 months of extreme pain with no diagnosis. Just fed up with it all.

Yadnad

swifty said:

I don’t think I have the fight in me...just went through so many forms and interviews for esa. Still nothing found on last mri. 8 months of extreme pain with no diagnosis. Just fed up with it all.

You have my sympathy. I too felt like that and had to decide if my health and wellbeing was more important than government money. My health came first and I shut down my PIP claim.

Yadnad

Username_removed said:

Get a representative. They’ll do the fighting.

I know that you mean well and probably the poster is well provided for in their area with excellent welfare rights organisations just waiting for them to walk in their door.

But the reality is that there are very few organisations in some areas which has created a 'desert'.
Having been brought up for the first 40 years of my life in and around the towns of Lancashire (Blackburn, Rochdale, Oldham & Bury) I am acutely aware that there used to be Welfare Rights organisations in abundance.
Now living in the rural parts of Kent for the last 30 years where even if you would like to go out for a meal on a Saturday night, journeys of one hour are common.
Welfare Rights organisations do exist but they are so inundated with people wanting help that the queues mean waits of 1/2 months are common and that is just to be registered for help (as with the CAB) It can then be another 4/8 weeks before you get to see anybody. Time limits imposed by the DWP make it impossible to wait that length of time.
AgeUK had to close up due to loss of funding. It has since reopened but no longer has a quality welfare rights service - their local website says that they offer a service of helping to fill out forms only
Council run services were cut some years ago

As I have mentioned in the past, I have had the experience of having a Professor of Law from the local university represent me at a Tribunal for a Council Tax appeal. He was utterly amazing in the way that he briefed me before hand but also how he handled the legal aspects of the hearing. I have never seen so many books of law on one table spread between the Judge, Counsel for the local authority and my rep. I just sat back and let it all happen. I came out of there thousands of pounds better off and the local authority being told to revise their guidance.
Sadly they no longer deal with these mundane types of claims - their time is now taken up by the massive volumes of appeals etc for illegal immigrants held in our local detention centres. Not only do we have the quiet beaches where they land as was the case last year in Dymchurch, but also the Channel Tunnel and the docks at Dover.

blueboy87

Got my brother in laws assessment report was comparing to his application for pip and drs letters I think he has got someone else’s report nothing coincides with application and drs letter he was going to give up as he can’t handle stress but I’ve found someone to represent him at his appeal just a waiting game now

Yadnad

Username_removed said:

It’s not optimism at all. Legally there’s no such thing as an MR. The phrase doesn’t exist in the legislation. There’s just “in time” applications (effectively the MR) or “any time: reviews. If you can show a ground - ignorance, mistake etc. - then you get a review. The only thing that’s changed is that in 2013 you became obligated to have the MR before the appeal. DWP then tried to kill appeals by arguing that a refusal to MR attracted no right of appeal. That was ended earlier this year by new caselaw which now means that DWP now find themselves with a whole pile of appeals on the back of MRs they previously refused. They’ve now slowly moved back to making MRs meaningful again in order to reduce the number of appeals and so pretty much MR will be given the go ahead.

Yes the 13th month time limit is absolute but that’s not hard to get round of you asl for an any time revision (as above); get refused but thus get a new decision against which to appeal.

Between 1 month and 13 there’s no issue. You used to have to show sodcoal reasims for late appeal. You no longer have to. You just have to show that your appeal has merit (that it’s not hopeless) and that it would be in the interests of justice for it to be admitted. DWP get asked if they would object to it being admitted. I’ve not heard of them doing so in years now unless the appeal truly is hopeless.

As I say the issue is not advice deserts. It’s poor information and people being easily discouraged.

You make this sound very much like them and us - the DWP V the general public.
Are you saying that a decision made in 2011 that was a revision to a 2004 decision can still be 'made to reopen' if I asked for an any time review - ie to test the validity of the 2011 decision that because no appeal was lodged at the time the 2004 decision was made they cannot make the backpayment for the 7 years?

If so why did the DWP tell me in 2012 (within the 13 month period) that I could not appeal as it was not an official error that caused the 2004 poor decision - it was my fault because I didn't submit the evidence at the right time errr I was in hospital for months.

Chloe_Alumni

Hi everyone, please can people be considerate of others opinions. I know you all want to support each other which is great. If we could be mindful in the future I am sure all members would appreciate that, thanks.

debbiedo49

Get help to fight it it’s worth it.

blueboy87

Hi I remember years ago I had to go for medical or assessment whatever it was in the 90s it was Christmas Eve and the doctor said you have enough with your mental health problems we won’t go into the physical ones wished me a merry Christmas and kept my DLA it wouldn’t happen now

swifty

I have requested a copy of the report the nurse sent. I only got 8 points as I am unable to walk any distance. May need to contact citizens advice or a place called advice shop for help should I decide to appear.

Yadnad

Username_removed said:

I’m not saying anything other than what I originally said, which is that I think that when someone gets a decision they’re not happy with and don’t feel like they have the fight then when someone like myself suggests that there are people out there who will do the fighting for you then it’s singularly unhelpful to keep coming on threads with negativity.

Just to pick you up on this again, In an ideal world where unlimited funds were made available to provide for universal good welfare advice and help, then yes everyone would be getting the help they need no matter where they lived.
Unfortunately that level of support no longer exists in many place in the UK - the South East in particular is one of those areas.
Let me put it this way if there was such a service that would take up the fight for me then I would have not needed to close my PIP claim down.

The service you suggest exists does not do so everywhere.

Yadnad

If you take the South East as an area there are three Scope centres. One in South East Essex, another in South East London and the third in Sussex at Hove near Brighton.
If you look at the map of Kent and unless you live in Dartford, Bromley maybe or near to Rye then the rest of the area is vast and has no cover.

It may be just a quirk and I certainly agree that the rest of the UK is probably better served.

debbiedo49

Lots of charitable and local organisations are springing up in response to demand for help with DWP. Some housing associations am due council now have their own welfare rights or money advice teams. Some volunteer centres offer cab advice. Start with your local Jobcentreplus, council or library and the two should be able to sign post you. The new theres they sites online that can provide advice. There is hope. There is help and there’s can be success.

Yadnad

debbiedo49 said:

Lots of charitable and local organisations are springing up in response to demand for help with DWP. Some housing associations am due council now have their own welfare rights or money advice teams. Some volunteer centres offer cab advice. Start with your local Jobcentreplus, council or library and the two should be able to sign post you. The new theres they sites online that can provide advice. There is hope. There is help and there’s can be success.

.

We don't rent - we own outright, so anything that involves a Housing Assn. is not relevant.
Our Council, and I should know, have closed down all of the council run advice centres due to reducing costs. We, as a council, refused to provide anymore funding to AgeUK (which caused it to close it's doors although it reopened on a skeleton basis) and reduced the amount given to the CAB for the same reason.

However I have not thought of the Jobcentre or the library (we are also in the process of closing that down early next year). The public loos and gardens are still safe for now!

I have to go to the library next week so will ask and as the JC+ is close by, I will ask there as well.

Can but try I suppose even if it is to be told that there is nothing available.
Advice web sites are good for what they are but it is better to talk a problem through face to face.

Yadnad

Username_removed said:

There’s no such thing as an advice web site. Web sites can give information. People give advice. They are profoundly different.

Obviously they are but advice is given through a website of which this is one forum.
Even if you just look at say the CAB website it offers advice.