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pip tribunal

dookmarley
dookmarley Community member Posts: 6 Listener
edited July 2019 in PIP, DLA, and AA
new to the group and looking for some tips as facing pip tribunal after a year of waiting. Been poorly since dec 2017 been misdiagnosed along the way ( from menieres disease, to posterior fossa tumours, ms)  but finally have a diagnosis of fibromyalgia, osteoarthiritis and ib and now have hearing aids due to significant hearing loss. finally been given medication, on pregabalin 300ml a day and sertraline 100ml to ease my newly found anxieties.
 Originally applied for pip in jan 2018 on the advice of esa,( in highest group with disability premium for esa) was turned down, scored no points.( assessor blatantly lied, said I walked unaided, yet I held on to my husband and a wall. even had the cheek to say I was well dressed and overweight, so must be ok!
 MR was also turned down so have gone to tribunal, been waiting 48 weeks so expecting a date any time soon. Didn't have my diagnosis at time of assessments but all symptoms described then still apply to signs of fibro, walking is a nightmare, in constant pain, ( suffering at mo with terrible back pain from lumbar punc 4 wks ago) have now got a walking stick and pushy trolley from OT, day to day living is a world away from life before dec 2017, and have become very reliant on support from my super husband for even the most basic of tasks. 
Have sent in all medical letters from appointments and consultant notes, what else can we do to convince tribunal we should be awarded pip?
Many thanks, all advice greatly appreciated, just want this nightmare over.

Comments

  • melissahicking2019
    melissahicking2019 Community member Posts: 131 Courageous
    edited June 2019
    Be as honest as you can and Try not to put it on or escadurate anything. They appreciate honesty and Good medical evidence.

    My friend just won his after waiting a year. To get into the tribunal actually took from May 2018 until may 2019 so exactly a year and  today is the 1  month deadline for the DWP to ask for a STATEMENT OF REASON from the judges in the unlikely event of them being able to appeal the tribunals Decision by ERROR OF LAW.


     But  when we rang on the 15th we where told that his case has now been allocated to the person who adds up how much is owed and that he should check his bank this week and next for the arrears.

    He like you was very ill and has all the medical evidence needed to prove illness but CAPITA denied him any points when there are obvious physical problems as well as mental health and other issues.

    The Panel at the tribunal where very nice, But they do have to ask questions and they will make you feel like they are probing you. But stay true and honest and you cannot go wrong..

    They will also take into account your evidence so try to make sure you understand what you have already provided as they will ask questions relevant of your paperwork.

    They may at times try to trip you up with their questions , they asked my friend some tricky questions then pushed him further with a tricky question that the answer required to be correct according to his evidence and paperwork, luckily my friend managed to answer all their questions , although he was very nervous and did not articulate very well with them, So there where many questions involved, some simple that lead onto more complex matters in relation to his daily living ect.

    Do dress appropriately and dot try to look scruffy and deliberately unkempt as they just see it as tactics on your behalf and consider the effort, or so they did in my friends case as we dressed him well and smart for the tribunal and the judges asked him why he was smart and he replied that we chose the clothes for him ect and that he would always dress well for a serious matter like today, and the panel smiled and thanked him for his efforts.

    They may tell you your decision there after the tribunal but we got a letter 3 days later.

    The judges are normal nice people and they seem to understand that you have had to be put through this system to get your benefits because of the changes and as long as you have good evidence there is no reason for you not to be awarded the benefits, however they are strict when it comes to law , so your case and evidence  has to fulfill the law for them to award you benefits, but thats mainly dependent on your evidence and the questions you answer.

    You can if you lose this appeal take it a step further and request a statement of reason from the judges within 1 month after your decision and then you must find an error of law, but if they make an  error in law and your solicitor or advisers feel they would win a case they can present their case to the upper tribunal for a further appeal where the case cane be further addressed as to weather the judges came to a decision in line with the law ect.

    They can overturn the 1st tier tribunals decision or they can flat out refuse to even allow you to appeal.

    I cannot offer you much detail in relation to the upper tribunal as i have never been through the process, but others have and there are lots of friendly people in this forum who will help you.

    The best advice i can give you is to Tell the truth and be as honest as you can and dont over do it..


    Hope this all helps.

    Mel.

  • dookmarley
    dookmarley Community member Posts: 6 Listener
    Thanks for comments, its such a tricky one as weve been messed about so much by hospital and they admit delaying my referrals to correct departments hence such a delay in getting correct diagnosis and correct aids etc. Also got our mp on board who has contacted the tribunal several times with letters of support.....Fingers crossed will give it our best shot, and hope honesty shines through on the day. Thanks again for advice
  • cristobal
    cristobal Community member Posts: 984 Disability Gamechanger
    @Username_removed - you're probably right.

    However, thinking back to my assessment I had a lot of questions about how i was on the day, and I used a diary I'd kept for a couple of weeks beforehand. Would I have been better keeping the diary before the date that I made the claim do you think?
  • dookmarley
    dookmarley Community member Posts: 6 Listener
    thanks for replies, fingers crossed ( well not quite as they hurt too much) but will be as open and honest and see what happens, will keep you posted
  • dookmarley
    dookmarley Community member Posts: 6 Listener
    So friday was the day of tribunal. Felt horrendous, very emotional after such a long wait. So we were as honest as could be, answered as much as we could, obviously going back to april last year is tricky plus the fact atos lied so much, how do you prove it though.
    So no decision given on day, got to wait for letter.
    Couldnt face waiting for letter as still not received by today (tuesday)....so rang dwp only to be told we were turned down again......devastated.
    What a joke this system is, waited over a year for this only to be treated like a liar! Then they have cheek to tell you to re apply.

    Anybody else been in same situation, need all the help / support possible thanks 
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,352 Disability Gamechanger
    I'm sorry to hear this. I would wait for the actual decision letter to arrive from HMCTS and you should receive that very soon, hopefully.

    If you have been refused then you have 1 month from the date of the decision to request the statement of reasons and record of proceedings. Once you receive this you need to find someone to take a look to see if an error in law has been made. If no error has been found then i'm afraid it's the end of the road for this claim.

    When requesting a Tribunal, it's not about proving the lies that were told because you can never prove that because it will always be your word against theirs.

    It's about proving you qualify, which descriptors apply to you and your reasons why,

    You can of course re-apply at anytime but before you do this i'd advise you to get some expert face to face advice, re-applying using the same evidence will likely see another refusal. This link will help you find what's local to you.

    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • Adrian_Scope
    Adrian_Scope Posts: 10,821 Scope online community team
    Hello @dookmarley, I'm so sorry your appeal was turned down at tribunal, that must have felt like quite a blow. 

    Community Manager
    Scope

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