ESA stopped help

Hi james1066,

The first step is to ask for a mandatory reconsideration of the decision. You can do this by writing to the DWP. The address should be on the letter you've received - remember to keep a copy of your request. You can ask for a copy of the assessor's report too, which might help - then you can indicate where you disagree with it.

ESA isn't awarded because of your conditions but instead is based on what you can and cannot do. So it might be useful to try the self-test first, and see what points you should have scored. Even if you don't get 15 points (the minimum you need) it's still possible to challenge the ESA decision if work would be a substantial risk to your health. You should explain why there's a risk if you need to use this rule.

Whilst you are waiting for the mandatory reconsideration to be looked at, you may have to claim jobseeker's allowance. I would recommend that you make the MR request first. That is because it will reduce the chance of having to claim Universal Credit. Please don't claim Universal Credit without getting further advice (either here or locally). 

If you claim jobseeker's allowance, let the Jobcentre know about any jobs you wouldn't be able to do because of your disabilities (for example, short-term memory loss might make it difficult for you to do certain types of jobs). 

You can also check whether you can get any other help with your living costs, perhaps housing benefit. And if you are not already claiming DLA or PIP, you could look into claiming PIP.

You can check all the benefits which might apply here. I hope that this gives you a way forward - remember to start withe the mandatory reconsideration request. That is simply asking the DWP to look at the decision again. It will help if you can say what points you should have got but don't worry if you are not sure; simply saying the decision is wrong is enough for now. 

Will