How long did your PIP decision take for a new claim? — Scope | Disability forum
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How long did your PIP decision take for a new claim?

Tasha88
Tasha88 Community member Posts: 7 Listener
Hi, I'm new to the forum. I have Autistic Spectrum Disorder and I finally applied for PIP in august this year (a little over 15 weeks ago now). This is the first time I've ever tried to claim any kind of disability benefits to help with the impact my autism has on my daily living. I had my face to face assessment today. I just wondered how much longer I should expect to be waiting now for an outcome to my claim? How long did it take for you to receive a decision after your assessment? If I am awarded, will they backdate payments to the date I applied? Thanks all. T x

Comments

  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,338 Disability Gamechanger
    edited December 2019
    Hi and welcome,

    There's no timescales for decisions, it depends on backlog in your area. Wait a week and ring DWP to request a copy of the assessment report to be sent to you. When you receive this you'll be able to add up any recommended points in the report and know what the award will be because they mostly go with the report. As it's getting very close to Christmas now, you may not receive any decision until after Christmas.

    If successfully awarded you'll be backdated your money from the date you rang to start your claim. If you're not happy with the decision you'll have 1 month from the date to request the Mandatory Reconsideration.
    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.
  • Tasha88
    Tasha88 Community member Posts: 7 Listener
    Thanks! Not sure why this posted twice! ?‍♀️ I received a text today to say they have received my written report already - phoned and asked them to send me a copy. I should receive it in 3-5 working days. It’ll be interesting to see what has been reported! Does the report state specifically “x many points” in each category, or is it more like a description? The questions in the assessment were the exact same questions as in the application so not sure why my written answers weren’t sufficient! ?‍♀️ I just hope the assessor has accurately recorded my answers - I’ve heard horror stories of them just making it up as they go along! 
  • Chloe_Scope
    Chloe_Scope Posts: 10,586 Disability Gamechanger
    Welcome to the community @Tasha88! I hope @poppy123456 has been able to provide you with all of the info that you need. If there is anything further that we can do then please do let us know. :)
    Scope

  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,338 Disability Gamechanger
    As previously advised, the report doesn't have the total amount of points added because it's just a recommendation. You'll need to look for the dots and compare them against the PIP descriptors online and add the points yourself.


    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.
  • Tasha88
    Tasha88 Community member Posts: 7 Listener
    I am furious. My pip assessment report arrived today and it is a complete fabrication - a pack of lies. I cannot think of any other way to describe it. I have phoned and asked for a complaints pack to be sent to me from Independent Assessment Services (ATOS). 

    She’s written that I showed no signs of anxiety despite me being VERY anxious and visibly so. My leg was violently jigging uncontrollably throughout the appointment. At one point there were loud sirens outside and I couldn’t continue to interview as I was too distressed by the noise, I had to ask to go outside and calm down as I was too nervous and felt tearful. It says I made consistent appropriate eye contact despite the fact I know I didn’t even look in her general direction at all once during the assessment and explained explicitly that I wouldn’t be able to process what she was saying or what I should say if I did look at her so she wouldn’t think I was being rude but just that eye contact is not something I can do. 

    I also explained that I cannot budget at all and run out of money weekly so have to borrow money from relatives on a weekly basis to cover essentials but this creates problems because then as soon as I get money I have to pay it back - she has ticked “can manage complex budgeting decisions unaided”. She notes that I said I should have enough money to live on but don’t budget and “this is silly because she is very intelligent” but academic intelligence is different from functioning and decision making. My ASD diagnostic report  notes that I have done well academically but my sense of responsibility and organisation is not consistent in other areas of my life. I have no mathematical ability at all - I am dyscalculiac and cannot do even simply sums. The assessor has assumed that because I am doing a PhD Calculations and budgeting are not a problem for me, even though I’ve explained that they are. 

    Despite explaining in-depth my problems communicating (this is my most significant daily challenge) and that I have no friends and am very isolated because of it, she has ticked “can engage with people unaided.” She hasn’t put anything I said in the report. 

    When asked if my condition was variable I said my capacities remain the same consistently but my functionality can significantly decrease when forced to exceed those capacities so am quite restricted by having to stay within those capacities, which usually isn’t possible. She has made up that I have more good days than bad and bad days are rare. Complete fabrication. 

    She asked if I self harm and I explained that I started self harming as a teenager (I’m 31) as a coping mechanism for when feeling very overwhelmed and that it’s a way of having control over my sensory experiences as it brings one sense to the fore helping other sensory information to be less overwhelming. I explained that this is something I  have to do frequently to avoid or come out of a meltdown. She asked how frequently I self harm and then didn’t give me a chance to answer and quickly changed the question to “when was the last time I self harmed?”. I explained that I had self harmed 2 days prior to the appointment and pointed out the blood still coming through my jeans - she wrote that I can’t remember the last time I self harmed and have no evidence of recent self harm! It’s a complete pack of lies!

    I haven’t got my pip decision yet and there’s a 6 week wait at least, but obviously after this report I am going to be declined. Should I bother appearing? I am so disheartened. If I’m not entitled fair enough but why couldn’t the paramedic who did my assessment just accurately record the truth so I would know whether I really should have been declined or not?! I’m so angry and upset :( 
  • Tasha88
    Tasha88 Community member Posts: 7 Listener
    Please excuse the typos ?‍♀️ Wrote on my iPhone in a rush and didn’t proof read - just read it back and it’s full of autocorrect errors. I think the general gist is there though. I’m so stressed now :( 
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,338 Disability Gamechanger
    I'm sorry to hear that. You will have to wait for a decision but it's rare for them to go against the report.

    You could start the MR request letter while you wait, if you want, this will save time once the decision's been made. When writing the MR letter you should avoid mentioning any lies/contradictions that were told in the report because they won't be interested in any of those. They will only be interested in where you think you should have scored those points and your reasons why. Adding a couple of real life examples of what happened the last time you attempted that activity for each descriptor that applies to you will also help.

    Any complaints about the report should be sent to the health assessment providers and details how to do that will be on their website.

    Most MR decisions remain the same so it's likely you'll have to take it to Tribunal. Appearing in person will give you the best chance of a decision in your favour. The only downside is the waiting lists are huge.

    There's no timescales for decisions but starting to write that letter will save a lot of time once the decision's been made.


    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.
  • Tasha88
    Tasha88 Community member Posts: 7 Listener
    Well - finally some good news! - 14 months after first applying for PIP I finally had my appeal tribunal last week and had the DWPs decision overturned! The DWP and face to face assessment gave me ZERO points; the appeal tribunal judged that I should have been given 11 points - just one point off of being awarded the enhanced rate! It is absolutely despicable that the DWP have made me wait this long when I’ve been entitled to PIP this whole time. The judge ruled that I should be paid it from the date I first applied and in the summer of 2019 to September 2022 before I can be asked to reapply! 

    I’m just wondering now how long I should expect to wait, before the DWP start paying me and send the back payment to me? I received my decision notice on 23rd September. Are the DWP likely to drag their feet about paying me? Is there a limit to how long they can take to send me the back payment and start paying me regular PIP payments? If you’ve been in this situation how long did it take for you to receive your payments after you received the decision notice from the tribunal? Thanks! 
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,338 Disability Gamechanger
    That's great news! thanks for the update. It can take between 2-8 weeks, sometimes longer to receive backdated money and about the same time to put your award into payment.

    They sometimes request the statement of reasons but rarely appeal it. If they request the SOR it doesn't mean they are appealing.

    All you can do now is wait to hear from DWP. The standard procedure is for them to contact you and ask you if you've been in hospital since you claimed and to confirm bank details. Once they ask this usually it's not much longer.
    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.
  • Tasha88
    Tasha88 Community member Posts: 7 Listener
    Thank you! I’m so pleased I stuck it out despite all the stress and anxiety. Hopefully the DWP don’t make me wait much longer - you’d think 14 months would be a good and long enough delay for them! ? 
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,338 Disability Gamechanger
    I agree it's a long time to wait. They do of course have the same chance we do to request the SOR. Hopefully, this won't happen and you'll receive what you're owed soon. We have had members that have received their money in about 2 weeks but we've had members that have waited several or more weeks.
    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.
  • ernie2009
    ernie2009 Community member Posts: 167 Pioneering
    well done tasha88 it was a long road but you you stuck it out and didnt give in and got what you deserved . a very big well done.
  • janer1967
    janer1967 Community member Posts: 21,964 Disability Gamechanger
    Great news and thanks for sharing 
  • chiarieds
    chiarieds Community member Posts: 16,007 Disability Gamechanger
    Thank you for sharing your positive news @Tasha88 & congratulations! :)

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