LCWRA

I migrated to UC from WTC and HB and told the work coach I had disabilities and asked several times how do I get on to the disability group, and got no response. I have also rang the UC helpline and they said they would contact the jobcentre. Still nothing. I have been bombarded with loads of 'to dos' and threatened with 'sanctions' if I do not do them even though the work coach knows I am due for 2 major surgeries back to back and will be signed off by the consultant for weeks, possibly months.

Only today, after numerous calls to the UC helpline and requests to my work coach did a lady on the UC helpline mention I had to provide a fit note. When I was claiming HB and WTC I didn't have to provide this as I was in receipt of PIP and previously DLA.

I told my local jobcentre that they should automatically inform claimants migrating from WTC and HB with PIP of the need to provide fit notes as many will assume, as I did, that PIP would cover it, it doesn't even though they ask you if you are in receipt of it on the UC application.

It is really worrying that I am not the only one repeatedly reporting health conditions/changes in health and not being told to provide a fit note and still be treated as though I have no health issues. I was told by the nice lady on the UC phone today that if the fit note is backdated to when you had the change or the start of the claim, that is when the payments are backdated. I hope someone reads this and is better informed so they are not disadvantaged by the lack of transparency with jobcentre staff.

Another thing I learnt today is even if you have PIP at whatever level, and are awaiting a WCA or a decision, it is at the work coach's 'discretion' whether they bombard you with meetings, to do lists and threats to sanction. What utter madness! Even if they offer you a telephone meeting instead of a face to face, they still give you so many to dos and demand that you commit on the same day. It is horrendous and I really feel for those vulnerable people who have been self employed for years and working as best as they can with their health issues, and are told that they are not 'gainfully employed' and need to do more, when awaiting back to major surgeries.

I hope they back down and give me a break and if they don't, it will be complaints time for me. Dozens of requests written in my journal asking politely how to be placed on the disability group and no response. Not good.

Hi Poppy

Thanks for your response. Perhaps there wasn't a question of whether I was on PIP but I imagined it, however, I did mention all my health conditions on the form and have told my work coach more than I would have liked, not that it made a difference. I think the problem is that I am self employed and they have decided, unlawfully, to disregard my disabilities and treat me as a self employed claimant with no health issues whatsoever and bombard with 'to do' lists that do not take into account my current health state. Very worrying especially as both the jobcentre and the advice line were non cooperative.

It is shameful that self employed claimants coming off WTC and HB with the disability element can lose months and months of their disability payments if this is not told to them. Perhaps this is the plan. Surely this should be on the application form itself i.e. no fit note submitted, no disability payments. I have read a lot of comments online from self employed single mothers who are losing work due to work coaches' appointments and have problems submitting their childcare receipts as they will not accept them when they are scanned. They too wish they were back on WTC. It's as if I have been hit by a train. Haven't been able to do anything productive since I was contacted by the work coach and I'm glad I waited until the final week available to do this as I heard it was hell.

The only 'help' the work coach gave was that I could get help from ATW. I told him I already had an account with them and they had supplied me with stuff several times and I didn't need him to refer me. Totally useless. Just wants to keep pressuring me thinking it is helping the social fund if he does. I told him, I will be earning less this year, as I am having back to back surgeries.

And another important thing, if you earn over £793 a month, after expenses (it is calculated over the year) you are no longer regarded as disabled. I am not making this up. You can still get the LCW and LCWRA but you will be subject to having to work with a work coach. How inspiring is that to get people to earn more😲

If you earn less than that, after you get either LCW and LCWRA you will pretty much be left as you were on WTC, working as much as you can manage without any income targets and just having to provide details of income and expenses.

Thanks for the clarification Poppy, as the whole thing does not make an iota of sense. He told me I had to earn £793 a month and be in gainful employment. Talk about pressure before surgeries. I was also told that if you were self employed and received LCW you were left to your own devices and didn't have to reach the £793 target. Different people stating different things. Even websites contradict each other on this. Really have to wait and see what actually happens.

I hope this work coach does not bother me when I am recovering from surgery. He really seems the type.

Here is another, more recent report:

https://www.disabilityrightsuk.org/news/thousands-disabled-people-be-%C2%A32800-year-worse-under-universal-credit#:~:text=The%20think%20tank%20reports%20that,rollout%20of%20UC%20is%20completed.