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DLA award of low rate mobility instead of high.
- ems7972
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3 years 9 months ago #261044 by ems7972
DLA award of low rate mobility instead of high. was created by ems7972
Hi,
I'm a mum and full time carer for 3 autistic children. My 12yo son recently had a renewal and received higher rate care but still only low rate mobility. I feel as he can't follow a familiar route without support and guidance and can't go out at all by himself, can't use public transport and lots of refusal to walk, meltdowns etc... that he qualified for high rate mobility. However, I did put yes and no in the tick boxes as he can move around school reasonably well by himself. Now I'm thinking that in general and 99% of the time he is unable to follow a familiar route on his own and its a bit contradictory when he cannot go out on his own. I'm not really sure if there's anything I can do about it now and was hoping someone might be able to suggest something.
When looking for information I found this and feel this criteria was not applied to my son.
Claimants should have been awarded the standard rate of PIP mobility if, because of overwhelming psychological distress, they needed someone with them to follow the route of an unfamiliar journey.
And they should have been awarded the enhanced rate if they could not follow the route of a familiar journey without having someone with them for the same reason.
I'm a mum and full time carer for 3 autistic children. My 12yo son recently had a renewal and received higher rate care but still only low rate mobility. I feel as he can't follow a familiar route without support and guidance and can't go out at all by himself, can't use public transport and lots of refusal to walk, meltdowns etc... that he qualified for high rate mobility. However, I did put yes and no in the tick boxes as he can move around school reasonably well by himself. Now I'm thinking that in general and 99% of the time he is unable to follow a familiar route on his own and its a bit contradictory when he cannot go out on his own. I'm not really sure if there's anything I can do about it now and was hoping someone might be able to suggest something.
When looking for information I found this and feel this criteria was not applied to my son.
Claimants should have been awarded the standard rate of PIP mobility if, because of overwhelming psychological distress, they needed someone with them to follow the route of an unfamiliar journey.
And they should have been awarded the enhanced rate if they could not follow the route of a familiar journey without having someone with them for the same reason.
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- BIS
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3 years 9 months ago #261069 by BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Replied by BIS on topic DLA award of low rate mobility instead of high.
Hi Emma
You could put in for a mandatory reconsideration and ask them to look at it again. Being able to move around school is not a "journey". The journey would be how how he gets to school and all the difficulties that you have laid out. The person reading it will probably not understand the difficulties of someone with autism, so you may have to go into more detail than you may have done already. You need to describe the meltdowns, what they look like, how long they would last and the terrible impact and the fact that he could not do this safely or reliably. It's important to use the term - overwhelming psychological distress. Although there is no definition for this - the threshold is quite high. I have family members with autism - (who have PIP) - so I know the challenges in getting people without the speciality or experience to understand, but don't hold back in telling them that he can't get to school or anywhere else and the fact that he can't take public transport should be taken into account.
If you haven't already, make sure that you request a copy of the assessment report (from the DWP), so you know what the assessor said so you know exactly what you're challenging.
BIS
You could put in for a mandatory reconsideration and ask them to look at it again. Being able to move around school is not a "journey". The journey would be how how he gets to school and all the difficulties that you have laid out. The person reading it will probably not understand the difficulties of someone with autism, so you may have to go into more detail than you may have done already. You need to describe the meltdowns, what they look like, how long they would last and the terrible impact and the fact that he could not do this safely or reliably. It's important to use the term - overwhelming psychological distress. Although there is no definition for this - the threshold is quite high. I have family members with autism - (who have PIP) - so I know the challenges in getting people without the speciality or experience to understand, but don't hold back in telling them that he can't get to school or anywhere else and the fact that he can't take public transport should be taken into account.
If you haven't already, make sure that you request a copy of the assessment report (from the DWP), so you know what the assessor said so you know exactly what you're challenging.
BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
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- Catherine
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3 years 9 months ago - 3 years 9 months ago #261114 by Catherine
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Replied by Catherine on topic DLA award of low rate mobility instead of high.
Hello Emma,
To add to what BIS has said, I suspect that there is some confusion between PIP and DLA. Because your son is 12 years old you will be applying for DLA not PIP for him.
It can be pretty confusing! PIP replaced DLA for most adults, but not children under 16. However both awards look at similar things such as your ability to undertake a journey. To add to the complication, although they look at the same thing, they assess them in very different ways.
The quote you gave was regarding PIP, not DLA. We have a guide on claiming DLA - DLA resources (second link down). This is probably a good place to start your research but do please come back to us if you have any more questions!
Three cheers for someone who cares for 3 autistic children!
Catherine
To add to what BIS has said, I suspect that there is some confusion between PIP and DLA. Because your son is 12 years old you will be applying for DLA not PIP for him.
It can be pretty confusing! PIP replaced DLA for most adults, but not children under 16. However both awards look at similar things such as your ability to undertake a journey. To add to the complication, although they look at the same thing, they assess them in very different ways.
The quote you gave was regarding PIP, not DLA. We have a guide on claiming DLA - DLA resources (second link down). This is probably a good place to start your research but do please come back to us if you have any more questions!
Three cheers for someone who cares for 3 autistic children!
Catherine
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Last edit: 3 years 9 months ago by Catherine.
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