Pip

 Hello Sophie18

You are in a difficult situation. 

Given that you attended a tribunal the next stage in challenging a decision is to show that this tribunal has made an ‘error of law.’ An error of law IS NOT about if you are entitled to PIP.  A legal error is when for example a tribunal has not interpreted the law correctly or there was no evidence to support their decision.

If you wanted to consider challenging the Tribunal decision the next stage is to ask the tribunal for a copy of the full reasons for their decision and a copy of any hand written notes taken by the tribunal judge.  The appeal service must receive this request within one month of the date of the decision. For example if you attended the appeal and were given the decision on 6 March 2017, then you must make this request by 5 April 2017.

Your request should be in writing, and state for example ‘I write to request the full reasons for the tribunal decision made on  ------ in regard to my PIP appeal.  I also request copies of any hand written notes taken during my appeal hearing.’   Your letter should also quote your name, address, national insurance number, and if possible you appeal reference.

Once you have the tribunal reasons it may be worth seeking advice e.g. from a local advice centre, Citizens Advice or Law Centre to see if an error of law can be identified.

If an error of law is identified you have to write to the tribunal explaining what the error is, and again you have 1 month from the date of the reasons to make this request. If this request is not successful you can make a further challenge and I would encourage you to post again, if this is the case.

You also asked about making a new claim.  You are able to make a new claim, however if this claim is made soon after a hearing, PIP are likely to make a negative decision.  

There is no set time when a new claim can be made but I would give it at least a few months.  If however your condition has got worse then make a new claim now, and explain that your condition has got worse and this is why you have put in a new claim.  Your PIP application needs to then detail this worsening in health. 

Good luck and please post if you have any further queries.

Maria

Hi Sophie,

Although it will have been the judge who made the ultimate determination on your case, the Medical member of the panel will undoubtedly have influenced the decision, as that is what they are there to do.

You rightly say that you have two options now, appeal, or re-claim.

In order to appeal, you will need to show that there has been an ERROR OF LAW. This may sound a bit complex, but in fact if the decision has been made based on assumptions taken from your appearance, then that may well have been an error. The first thing to do, is to find out whether this did in fact influence the decision. In order to do this, you need to send a copy of your Decision Notice to the Tribunals Service, with a short letter asking for a STATEMENT OF REASONS  for the decision. The Judge will then send a statement of reasons and you can read this and either decide for yourself whether to appeal, or take legal advice on whether to do so.

As regards re-claiming, if your condition has not deteriorated since you last claimed, then I would give it a few months, as a decision maker would be unlikely to go against the Tribunal. If your condition has deteriorated, then yes, re-claim as soon as possible, and make it clear that your condition has got worse.

Hope this helps,

Kind regards,

Mary

Solicitor

The Benefits Training Company

Hi sophie18

Like Mary says above you should make a new claim if there has been a deterioration. However, a change of circumstances doesn't usually take effect immediately as there is a 3 month rule meaning your needs must have existed for at least three months before you can be entitled. If your condition has been worse for at least three months since the last decision was made (likely i think) then i would suggest making a new claim straight away. You can do this at the same time as considering appealing the first decision to the Upper Tribunal.

I think it's worth adding that your second claim is only likely to succeed if you can provide evidence of the deterioration.

I hope this helps
David

hi sophie18,

If you are getting the daily living component of PIP then no, you can't make a new claim unless you first withdraw your current claim completely in order to start again, which I wouldn't recommend as at least at the moment you are getting money.

So what you need to concentrate on is the unsuccessful appeal about the mobility component. As my colleague Mary has explained, you have asked for the statement of reasons and this should arrive before too long. It is not written for the DSS (DWP) however. It's written for both parties to the appeal (that is, you and the DWP) and supplied to either or both of them on request. It won't be so easy for the judge to make sure their thoughts are matched with the law if they can't find adequate reasoning for the conclusions they come to.

Once you get the statement of reasons you should be able to see how much the tribunal used your appearance, including your footwear, to come to their conclusions.

I strongly recommend that once you get the reasons you seek some face-to-face advice if you can, as we're not able to look at documents here on the forum. You could try your local CAB or a law centre. A specialist adviser can help you decide if there has been an error of law - this can include taking things into account that the tribunal shouldn't have taken into account, which might include your appearance.

You have to ask the first tier tribunal for permission to appeal to the upper tribunal within one month of getting the written statement, so don't delay once you have it to get the advice you need. I wouldn't recommend going to an upper tribunal without an adviser to support you and help prepare your case.

Another thing you could consider is making a complaint about the medical member of the tribunal, the doctor who made the comments you mention. You would complain by writing to the regional tribunal judge for your area. However, from a tactical point of view, you may want to wait before you do this (in case it is the same judge that heard your appeal, and who is currently writing up the reasons). These things can be a bit tricky - a local adviser could help you with this.

Finally, you say you were told by the physio not to wear flats, but who was this? Was this someone who is currently supporting you medically? Did they supply evidence which was submitted to the tribunal? I'm not sure why you think she may have influenced the decision other than by the advice she gave you about footwear. I'm just wondering whether you need to take any other steps about that advice.

Hope this helps.

Will