Appeal Advice

Apologies first if this is long winded. My daughter was recently asked to apply for PIP when she turned 16. Had higher rate care and lower rate mobility. We got the outcome quite quick after a paper based assessment, not our choice as they cancelled her F2F due to her communication problems. She was awarded 17 points for Daily Living and only 4 for Mobility, so no award at all for mobility. She has Autism and a serious vitamin D deficiency and attends a specialist provision and will probably do so till she is 25.

Now I have been a subscriber to Benefits and Work for some time and have always followed the advice given. However we asked for a Mandatory Reconsideration and the letter we got back on Christmas Eve was disgusting. The way it was written was shocking and the spelling mistakes, no full stops at the end of sentences and no gaps between words made it very difficult reading. Basically the DM has stated that because she is working towards GCSE's she does not have learning difficulties, Also she has no physical disability so therefore she has no communication problems. Even though her consultant did a second letter stating that due to her Autism and sensory issues she is unable to follow the route of a familiar or unfamiliar journey without another person present, DWP DM has stated that there is no medical evidence to support how she is affected and that they do not consider dangers that are unlikely to happen, so our daughter having no sense of road safety and the dangers is ok in there eyes. I am furious and more so that the letter came Christmas Eve late afternoon and when we rang they were closed. So after reading through all of the info on the site I need some advice.

Is it worth appealing? also her award is only till July 2018 but they state that they will contact us on the 26th May 2017. My daughter will quite happily go to a tribunal but she will not speak to strangers so I am happy for anyone to see how her autism affects her as we have been honest and truthful throughout. There is no way on earth our daughter can get herself from A to B either on foot or using public transport. Her GP has since done quite a detailed letter stating that anything over 200m she needs a wheelchair for both physical and psychological reasons. As she can not cope outdoors very well around other people. I just feel like I am wading through treacle and don't know what more evidence they can want as everything we have sent in was very detailed and specific to the questions they have asked. I have copied and pasted the decision makers reasoning below as they have written and typed it up so any spelling or punctuation errors are not mine.

You asked us to look at the decision that made on the 23rd November 2015 as you disagreed with some of the descriptors chosen. You have sent a letter of support from your paediatrician which confirms the difficulties she has, such as requiring a wheelchair for long distances and her vitamin D deficiency. There are no clinical findings and the letter includes information you have given with regard to lifestyle, particularly budgeting. We do not consider ability to set up direct debits, nor understanding costs of items which you have never had exposure to, there is no medical reason why you would not understand the costof items and you are currently undertaking GCSE's with no evidence of a learning difficulty. The original assessment considered your conditions, treatment and medication, also taking informaitonfrom your hospital doctor and your care plan. You have said you have difficulty communicating however, you have no speech impairment norphysical restrictionwhich prevents you speaking and we have not changed this descriptor, we have already given you points for engaging with others. Your benefit has been limited asmany people adopt coping strategieswhich enable them to adapt to daily livingactivities, a short award allows us to reviewyour case to ensure you are getting the correct payments.
You have said you have difficulty planning a journey, we have considered how you are affect for the majority of the time and there is no medical evidence to support the level of claimed needs. We do not consider dangers that are unlikely to happen. Every claimant under 16 has an appointee andit is not unusual for this tocontinue for the first few years of claiming PIP, at the claimants request. The descriptors for all activities remain unchanged and are as detailed in your original letter. If you still disagree with the decision, this letter tells you what to do next.


I thought the above made quite laughable reading and was a blow as to what the consultant had written in support. I really do not know what they want as everything has been really detailed. I know that nobody can make the decision to appeal for us but we just need to know is it really worth it and roughly how long will an appeal usually take. Any help and advice would be appreciated. Also would it be worth getting in contact with our MP for any kind of support. Thanks in advance.

Contact your MP; give him all the details from your daughter's Consultant and also the (quite laughable) response from DWP. That someone's future could in any way be decided by someone hardly literate is just wrong. Don't hesitate to contact your MP - it's about time they were made aware of how people are being treated. Inhuman and inhumane. Good luck to you.

Hi Gordon firstly thanks for the reply, yes they upheld the 17 points for daily living. I put a letter together with my MR and stated that she is unable to plan, navigate or always complete a journey. I was aware of the judge Agnew argument and knew that described our Daughter exactly. This is also what the consultant stated but DWP are saying that it is not a reason to meet the points for anything above 4 points for mobility.

I work as a child pedestrian trainer for our local authority and am fully aware of what she is capable of outdoors and being safe on a daily basis alone crossing roads is not one of them. I have explained how her Autism affects this activity and the sensory issues and her cognitive ability. Feel like I am hitting a brick wall, also the members guides don't really cover any form of Autism in the appeals guides so I am struggling of how to expand any further than I have in an appeals letter.

Anyhow if I do go down the appeals route I assume from what I have read that I need to put my appeal in writing. Also can I just ask to appeal on the grounds of the mobility decision. I know the whole award will be looked at and I am worried about Daughter losing what we have already had to fight for. Any idea how long appeals are taking as I think from what I have read we could be to the point of the award being looked at by the time the appeal comes through. Also the MP was a waste of time, they are unable to help in any way.

I'm appalled at what I'm reading about your experiences. I have been reading all the forum posts regarding P.I.P. applications for people with Autism. As parents and carers we know that the complexities of the Autistic condition are never fully understand outside of professionals working in the field. Please keep on fighting, unfortunately it's what we all have to do. My best wishes to you and good luck in getting this resolved hopefully.
My name will be popping up all over the forum, which is brilliant, it's great to have a place to share experiences and empathise.

Best wishes

Celya