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help needed with reconsideration
- ravenmoonstone
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7 years 3 months ago #179243 by ravenmoonstone
help needed with reconsideration was created by ravenmoonstone
Hoping someone can help with what I need to do.
Writing on behalf of my daughter;
She recently had an ESA assessment and was told from this basically there's nothing wrong and can go onto JSA
She has arthritis,a muscle problem,depression and anxiety and non epileptic attacks amongst other things, yet the only thing written down was loss of consciousness at least once a month (often 2-3 times a month and several seizures in one go, she can also sometimes come round then go out again later that day) for which scored 6 points.
She has good days and bad days with these illnesses,but this has not been taken into account.
I went in with her and my daughter told her that I was there to help her stay calm as gets a little panicky with people she doesn't know and also helps her remember things
This was just dismissed and because daughter spoke to her (answering her questions) scored o points
On a bad day can have anything from just a couple to 50 seizures in a day which affects memory for around 1-2 hours minimum,so much cant even remember her own name let alone anything else.
Unfortunately also have started fitting in sleep as well as during the day and sometimes wets self (it has been assumed along with many other things, no problems with incontinence etc)
When bathing she makes sure someone is in the house and they regularly check on her,everything has to be written down as will forget if has an episode,
Doesn't use the oven if she is on own and when cooking use a perch stool to sit on.
It was recorded that she sat in a chair for 43 minutes,yet she had back pains and was holding lower back and constantly changing position. again this was dismissed
The muscle spasms she gets in legs are sometimes so painful, can not get out of bed and need help to even get to the toilet ( grab rails installed for balance)
As for stairs even on a good day holds on to the banisters on both sides for balance.
she rarely goes out on her own,but use a mobility scooter and even on this I have to stop every so often for a short rest.
if walking she has to stop and rest after approx 20 minutes due to pain from arthritis
The assessor has also written that can walk for 2 hours around the supermarket.
she goes in the car with us,( her parents) and uses a mobility scooter or if having a good day and if walking makes regular stops using the trolley for balance.
she is making an appointment with doctor for medical records and gathering statements from various people who have helped or called ambulances.
Is there anything else I could do to help her with the reconsideration please?
Writing on behalf of my daughter;
She recently had an ESA assessment and was told from this basically there's nothing wrong and can go onto JSA
She has arthritis,a muscle problem,depression and anxiety and non epileptic attacks amongst other things, yet the only thing written down was loss of consciousness at least once a month (often 2-3 times a month and several seizures in one go, she can also sometimes come round then go out again later that day) for which scored 6 points.
She has good days and bad days with these illnesses,but this has not been taken into account.
I went in with her and my daughter told her that I was there to help her stay calm as gets a little panicky with people she doesn't know and also helps her remember things
This was just dismissed and because daughter spoke to her (answering her questions) scored o points
On a bad day can have anything from just a couple to 50 seizures in a day which affects memory for around 1-2 hours minimum,so much cant even remember her own name let alone anything else.
Unfortunately also have started fitting in sleep as well as during the day and sometimes wets self (it has been assumed along with many other things, no problems with incontinence etc)
When bathing she makes sure someone is in the house and they regularly check on her,everything has to be written down as will forget if has an episode,
Doesn't use the oven if she is on own and when cooking use a perch stool to sit on.
It was recorded that she sat in a chair for 43 minutes,yet she had back pains and was holding lower back and constantly changing position. again this was dismissed
The muscle spasms she gets in legs are sometimes so painful, can not get out of bed and need help to even get to the toilet ( grab rails installed for balance)
As for stairs even on a good day holds on to the banisters on both sides for balance.
she rarely goes out on her own,but use a mobility scooter and even on this I have to stop every so often for a short rest.
if walking she has to stop and rest after approx 20 minutes due to pain from arthritis
The assessor has also written that can walk for 2 hours around the supermarket.
she goes in the car with us,( her parents) and uses a mobility scooter or if having a good day and if walking makes regular stops using the trolley for balance.
she is making an appointment with doctor for medical records and gathering statements from various people who have helped or called ambulances.
Is there anything else I could do to help her with the reconsideration please?
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- Gordon
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7 years 3 months ago #179305 by Gordon
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Replied by Gordon on topic help needed with reconsideration
ravenmoonstone
Based on your post, if she only loses consciousness two or three times a month, irrelevant of how many seizures she might have a day then the six points would appear to be correct, however, I would have though that there would be a risk of harm due to the number of daily seizures. See the ESA Claim guides for more information.
Even if her walking is restricted, she may still not score points for Mobility as the test as considers her ability to use a manual wheelchair, she does not need to be using one or to even own one for this to be considered.
The first stage to challenging a Decision is for you to request a Mandatory Reconsideration, this needs to be done in writing to the DWP, within one month of the Decision, to the office that dealt with your claim, have a look at our ESA MR & Appeal guide for details of the process, the ESA area also has template letters that you can use to make the request with.
www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/help-for-claimants/esa1
You should contact the DWP for a copy of the assessment report if you have not already done so (ESA85), I would phone them but again follow up the request in writing. Once you have the assessment report you will have a better understanding of how the DWP Decision Maker has come to their conclusions and will then be able to argue against them.
Your primary task is to show that you meet the criteria, there are many reasons you may have failed, you need to address each of these but don't get bogged down in criticising the assessment report unless you can clearly show that it is incorrect, it is a lot easier to argue the facts of the situation;
"the assessor recorded that I walked 50m, I did but they have failed to document that I had to stop every 10m for a rest due to breathlessness"
than their opinions
"based on my observations of the claimant walking I believe that they can reliably walk more than 200m.
When you have a better idea of the issues with your claim, come back to the forum and we will do our best to help.
Gordon
Based on your post, if she only loses consciousness two or three times a month, irrelevant of how many seizures she might have a day then the six points would appear to be correct, however, I would have though that there would be a risk of harm due to the number of daily seizures. See the ESA Claim guides for more information.
Even if her walking is restricted, she may still not score points for Mobility as the test as considers her ability to use a manual wheelchair, she does not need to be using one or to even own one for this to be considered.
The first stage to challenging a Decision is for you to request a Mandatory Reconsideration, this needs to be done in writing to the DWP, within one month of the Decision, to the office that dealt with your claim, have a look at our ESA MR & Appeal guide for details of the process, the ESA area also has template letters that you can use to make the request with.
www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/help-for-claimants/esa1
You should contact the DWP for a copy of the assessment report if you have not already done so (ESA85), I would phone them but again follow up the request in writing. Once you have the assessment report you will have a better understanding of how the DWP Decision Maker has come to their conclusions and will then be able to argue against them.
Your primary task is to show that you meet the criteria, there are many reasons you may have failed, you need to address each of these but don't get bogged down in criticising the assessment report unless you can clearly show that it is incorrect, it is a lot easier to argue the facts of the situation;
"the assessor recorded that I walked 50m, I did but they have failed to document that I had to stop every 10m for a rest due to breathlessness"
than their opinions
"based on my observations of the claimant walking I believe that they can reliably walk more than 200m.
When you have a better idea of the issues with your claim, come back to the forum and we will do our best to help.
Gordon
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
The following user(s) said Thank You: ravenmoonstone
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