Telephone assessments if you are deaf

Hello Ted,

The DWP are under an obligation to ensure that your application can be properly considered, and I agree with you that a text phone conversation really would not work, even with the most agile of fingers.

If you would like a face to face assessment, it might be possible to request one, since they have restarted them in various parts of the country. You can also write to the DWP in advance of your assessment and say that you wish for your partner to be your representative, this means that the assessor would ask your partner questions and they could either answer them direct or refer the matter to you and then give your answer back to the assessor. A white ago I wrote a quite detailed responce to someone in a very different situation yourself, but you might find the information helpful. www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/forum1/10-dla-...eries-results/135314

The other alternative is to request a paper based decision, but they are generally reluctant to give these if there is an alternative.

You say that you will be claiming PIP or AA soon, which I assume means that you are close to State Pension Age. If you have option of claiming before you reach SP age, you can claim PIP and have the possibility of being awarded a mobility element. If you wait until after state pension age, you will have to claim AA and there is no mobility element to that. If you are successful in being awarded PIP that award, subject to you still meeting the conditions for the award, will stay with you for life.

Hope that helps
Catherine

Hi Rambling Ted,
When you say you are applying for PIP, is this something you have been asked to do by DWP because you need to be transferred onto PIP, or is this something you volunteered to do? Have you actually applied for PIP?
If you are on DLA and are asked to claim PIP, then you will need to claim as your DLA will end.
PIP mobility isn't quite as simple as can you walk 50 m. As with all PIP descriptor activities you need to show what happens for the majority of days. So if a better day means a longer walk, then you shoukd still get points.Then you will need to show whether you can do the activity safely, within no more than twice the reasonable time, to an acceptable standard and repeatedly across the day as required. All criteria apply. Think about your speed, manner of walking, whether you get severe discomfort ie breathlessness or pain, or other cause of severe discomfort. Do you have falls? What are you like the next day?
Have a look at the Members Guides.
Good luck.
LL26