ESA

Hi,

I'm requesting your advice on behalf of my Mother. A couple of years ago the DWP sent her a form to fill out. At the time they said it was just an update of her circumstances and if anything had changed over the years. Then last year she was invited to attend an assessment where the assessor (who was a nurse) said that Mum had applied for ESA and that's what the assessment was for. As the assessment started the nurse asked my mum about her conditions, these had changed over the 12 months+ it took them to invite her for an assessment so the nurse said due to her disabilities she would need to be assessed by a doctor. It's now been two years since my mum filled out this form and she's only just had her letter for an assessment with a doctor for next month.

My question is, is it normal for them to firstly invite someone to apply for a new benefit without them knowing they are doing it. And also is it normal for it to take over a year or two to invite them for an assessment using old information?

Thanks

Hi Lucy,

It is unheard of for an ESA claim to be initiated by DWP rather than the claimant! I wonder if someone else made the initial approach on your mother's behalf (someone from CAB, McMillan or other benefits advisor)?

Most claimants are assessed within a few months of applying but we do hear of people, like your mother, whose paperwork seems to have sat at the bottom of the pile for a very long time. If your mother has been in the assessment phase for more than 365 days, and is still being paid, she must be on income-related ESA.

As it is so long since an ESA50 was completed, you and your mother might want to read this link

Invited to a face to face assessment but no ESA50 sent


You might also want to bookmark/favourite this on your web browser now so that you can find it easily in future. This will allow you to return with further questions/comments about your mother's ESA claim without having to start a new topic each time. It helps us enormously when everything relating to the same claim is kept in one place - and I hope you will find it useful too