ESA trauma!

Hi Everyone
Just posting this on behalf of my wife who has suffered from ME/CFS for over 15 years now.
Having successfully appealed against an ATOS decision to stop her IB nearly 5 years ago (decision made on the day of the Tribunal)-with lots of great advice from this site, my wife was called for another ATOS assessment this autumn despite having supplied both GP and Consultant (Barts) supporting evidence of her inability to work.
After a 5 hour 'experience' in Croydon (1 hour taxi ride, 1 hour wait, 1 hour consultation, 1 hour wait for ATOS taxi, 1 hour home.....
The doctor she saw refused to discuss his 'understanding' of her condition and asked her to do all the usual physical actions which have no relevance to her condition. Plus he seemed far more interested in other conditions she has (which wouldn't affect her ability to work) rather than the ME - which certainly does!
The report he produced which we finally got to see after she had been placed in the WRAG was horrendous. Poor grammar which I wouldn't allow my Year 6 pupils at school to get away with! Seriously, the meaning was often unclear!
Anyway, to cut a long story short, my wife decided to ask for a Mandatory Reconsideration as the decision just didn't seem to match the evidence she had provided.
In the meantime, as part of the WRAG she had her first appointment at a local JobCentre Plus and met her advisor, this experience far more positive than we thought it would be with the advisor agreeing that she looked really ill and need not meet up again until February.
Unfortunately, last Wednesday, a really shattering phonecall from the DWP assessor telling my wife that the Mandatory Reconsideration had taken place and that she was now not entitled to any benefit because she had scored 0 points on the ATOS assessment (how could that be the case with assignment to the WRAG??) The assessor was really sarcastic ('I bet you weren't expecting that were you?) and promised to phone back Monday, as my wife was too upset to carry on the phone call. Surprise surprise, this follow up call hasn't taken place.
We are now both furious and totally frustrated. I read on this site that only 3% of IB transfers to ESA have all their benefits cut so cannot imagine why this should have happened in our case. My wife does have supporting evidence which was submitted. She was also a dedicated primary teacher prior to contracting this condition and would work if she possibly could. I see first hand what effect this illness has on her from day to day and cannot believe that anyone in their right mind can suggest that she is 'fit for work'!
We are wondering whether to bother appealing - the effort involved for her almost seems too much to face!
Help please - are there others in a similar position to us!

Hi and welcome to the forum. It appears that your wife's full name might be visible as your username. If you wish to change this, in order to maintain a degree of anonymity, you can do so by following the advice in this FAQ

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It appears that you are already familiar with our site, so I'm sure you would have used our ESA guide to help you fill in the ESA50 form. It would still be worth having another look at the guide to refresh your memory and get a clear idea of which descriptors apply to your wife.

ESA claims and appeals

If 0 points were scored then your wife must have been put in to the WRAG as a result of the 'special circumstances' rule, it is possible to gain the Support Group via a similar rule but the onus is on the claimant to clearly show what risks apply and why.

When you have the written MR result, you can then submit your official appeal. ESR payments, at the assessment rate, would then restart. You can pull out of the process at any stage so you would not be committed to continuing if the appeal appeared to be having a deleterious affect on your wife's health (or yours).

Appeals FAQs

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