PIP PHONE ASSESSMENT. How long after should I expect a decision?

Hi all, I'm a new member. I was awarded a PIP in 2021 to last to July 2024. Denied at first application and at Mandatory reconsideration but awarded full PIP prior to it going to a tribunal.  Recently I had a PIP review over the telephone. Let me tell you that this was NOT a review, it was a complete new assessment. And very worryingly for a lot of people, this assessment lasted 2 hours and 20 minutes.  I am hoping to reach out to as many people as possible who have a review coming up for PIP that has been awarded due to mental health issues.  The assessor asked a lot of questions and repeated the same questions 5 minutes later on many occasions. There was a lot of unnecessary questions asked that were not related to my claim. Please be aware and have all of your evidence to hand.  The assessors telephoned both my GP AND my Community mental health team. You must have all your diagnosis and medication list up to date and have a strong supporting letter from your Mental Health team. One of the main issues I had was that the MH team have more information than my GP about my ongoing issue. I no longer see my GP for MH as it is passed onto my CMH team and this can cause you problems.  For example I have had a history of convictions in the past which my MH team know about and it is well documented, however on my previous assessment my GP told the assessor that I have NO history of convictions.  This was put on the assessors report which i requested as part of my appeal. As you can see this can cause us a lot of problems due to lack of clarity from the GP.  You must ensure that both the GP and your Mental health team have the same information.  Trust me, this was more like an interrogation than an assessment, i was told 40 minutes to an hour and it lasted 2 hour 20 mins!!!

My advice is that you must have a fully detailed answer ready for all the questions that will be asked. My opinion is that they are going after people with mental health as I am aware of someone who had a PAPER review and sailed through to another 3 years of PIP, and this person's claim is based on 75% physical health and 25% mental health. I have a lot more I could say, but any questions please do not hesitate to ask.

Best of Luck

@alaskajade1987 Hi do you have a update on decision as I'm going through the same process. Thank you. 

blonde1234 said:

hi how long do you wait for pip Decision they text me to say that they have received my report back from the person who asked you loans of questions. then the next day i receive a call from dwp asking me a few more questions took about 3 minutes and 1 of the questions was who do i bank with i told them they said thankyou does that mean i am going to get pip does anyone know please thanks 

Hi, I had my PIP assessment over the telephone which lasted 1 hr & 55 minutes on the 15th of March. Even though the advisor was so polite and supportive, the phone call was herendous.  They basically ask you the same questions as you fill in the form. In the end I had to pass the phone over to my sister to finish the assessment.

 I have had a text to say my assessment is being looked at, this was on the 16th of March. I then received a text on the 30th of March to say no decision has vern made. 

Then on the 31st of March I received a letter saying no decision had been made.

I phoned DWP on Friday 12th of March, after waiting on the phone for 1 hr  & 8 minutes I was told my claim is bring processed l, however there is a back log since lock down, and claims can take up to 6 months, again the advisor really helpfull and polite, but I.just think the whole process is exhausting and traumatic.

Rosie_Scope said:

Welcome to the community @poppy16, and thanks for sharing your timeline. It's not an easy process to go through at all, but it's always good to hear people's experiences

It's herendous,and if I do not get it then.i will.no be appealing.  Thos.process has totally drained me .