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PIP assessment
- sandra-jones
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2 weeks 1 day ago #310767 by sandra-jones
PIP assessment was created by sandra-jones
Hi
My son has a diagnosis of autism level 2 (needs significant support). He does live alone but with a lot of help and support from myself and his sister. He has his assessment on 01.12.2025 and it is a telephone assessment. My daughter says I should ask them to change it to a face to face assessment as this will help them when deciding whether to award or not because they will be able to see his difficulties. My daughter says they cannot properly assess him without actually seeing him.
When he had his autism assessment for diagnosis, the psychiatrist said he can only diagnose by actual face to face observation and dialogue with my son, with me present. I am his appointee.
Half of me is thinking that the physical evidence on the application form was enough and a telephone assessment is a formality, or is it going to help them (DWP) to decline an award because over the telephone it is going to be very difficult to witness his lack of focus, constant fidgeting, lack of eye contact etc?
Do you, or any other members, have a view on this topic?
Sandra
My son has a diagnosis of autism level 2 (needs significant support). He does live alone but with a lot of help and support from myself and his sister. He has his assessment on 01.12.2025 and it is a telephone assessment. My daughter says I should ask them to change it to a face to face assessment as this will help them when deciding whether to award or not because they will be able to see his difficulties. My daughter says they cannot properly assess him without actually seeing him.
When he had his autism assessment for diagnosis, the psychiatrist said he can only diagnose by actual face to face observation and dialogue with my son, with me present. I am his appointee.
Half of me is thinking that the physical evidence on the application form was enough and a telephone assessment is a formality, or is it going to help them (DWP) to decline an award because over the telephone it is going to be very difficult to witness his lack of focus, constant fidgeting, lack of eye contact etc?
Do you, or any other members, have a view on this topic?
Sandra
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- BIS
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2 weeks 5 hours ago #310784 by BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Replied by BIS on topic PIP assessment
Hi sandra-jones
It's entirely up to you what you want to do - but I'm afraid I strongly disagree with your sister thinking that an assessor will meet your son and observe and understand his difficulties. Many assessors have zero understanding of the complexities of someone with autism, whether it be over the telephone or face to face and they are not going to have the experience of a consultant psychiatrist. If your son is anything like one of my relatives with autism, he will give the answers he thinks are required, not the answers that accurately reflect his difficulties, of which he has little understanding.
I am curious about one thing - if you are his appointee, why are they talking to him at all? As his appointee you can answer for him. Some assessors say they have to speak to the claimant. They don't but they try and bully relatives into it and mumble something about safeguarding issues. It is all rubbish. If your son wants to take part - do so - but there are parents on here who have refused to let assessors anywhere near their adult children and there are those that didn't (because they didn't know) and later wished they had.
One area that I slightly disagree with you - is don't assume that the evidence you gave on the application form is enough and the telephone assessment a 'formality'. Nothing is a given when applying for PIP - a lot of it comes down to luck and the type of assessor you get.
I hope some other people may comment. Don't be swayed by what I say. I've given you my opinion. You know your son and what he can cope with, and if you feel you would prefer a face-to-face assessment, ask them to change it.
BIS
It's entirely up to you what you want to do - but I'm afraid I strongly disagree with your sister thinking that an assessor will meet your son and observe and understand his difficulties. Many assessors have zero understanding of the complexities of someone with autism, whether it be over the telephone or face to face and they are not going to have the experience of a consultant psychiatrist. If your son is anything like one of my relatives with autism, he will give the answers he thinks are required, not the answers that accurately reflect his difficulties, of which he has little understanding.
I am curious about one thing - if you are his appointee, why are they talking to him at all? As his appointee you can answer for him. Some assessors say they have to speak to the claimant. They don't but they try and bully relatives into it and mumble something about safeguarding issues. It is all rubbish. If your son wants to take part - do so - but there are parents on here who have refused to let assessors anywhere near their adult children and there are those that didn't (because they didn't know) and later wished they had.
One area that I slightly disagree with you - is don't assume that the evidence you gave on the application form is enough and the telephone assessment a 'formality'. Nothing is a given when applying for PIP - a lot of it comes down to luck and the type of assessor you get.
I hope some other people may comment. Don't be swayed by what I say. I've given you my opinion. You know your son and what he can cope with, and if you feel you would prefer a face-to-face assessment, ask them to change it.
BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
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- denby
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1 week 6 days ago #310799 by denby
Replied by denby on topic PIP assessment
Dear Sandra-Jones, Late diagnosed albeit high functioning autistic myself, various family members autistic also, I strongly back everything BIS has said.
Best with the assessment,
use your appointee status
and do not let the DWP's uncaring contractors grind you down.
Denby
Best with the assessment,
use your appointee status
and do not let the DWP's uncaring contractors grind you down.
Denby
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- Wendy Woo
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1 week 6 days ago #310806 by Wendy Woo
Replied by Wendy Woo on topic PIP assessment
Hello,
I just wanted to say how much I agree with everything BIS has written, even though I completely understand your daughter's point of view. At the time of my son's first PIP assessment (which was face-to-face), I made the mistake of thinking the assessor would immediately spot his problems because most people do - autism is not, unfortunately, an invisible disability.
I don't wish to alarm you unnecessarily because I hope it goes well for you, but the assessment is certainly not a formality - it is probably the most important part of the process because most decision makers follow the assessor's report to the letter and do not appear to look at any other evidence.
I did not realise at the time that, as his appointee, I could have spoken on behalf of my son, and I made the same mistake with his second assessment, which was a telephone assessment - as soon as the assessor realised he was in the room with me, she insisted on speaking to him and would not listen to anything I had to say.
Over the years, I have found that most people who work for the DWP understand the role of an appointee, but assessors tend to ignore it if they can and will insist they must speak directly to the claimant. Next time, I hope to be more careful.
I mustn't go on and on because I've posted many times about this before (people will be bored with hearing from me!) and this is only my personal opinion. Whatever you decide to do, if it goes well, you can give yourself a pat on the back and relax for a while, but if not, you will wish you'd done things differently; don't beat yourself up about it. There are no certainties with PIP because it's very much down to the luck of the draw. Even if the assessor seems sympathetic, there are no guarantees, as many people on the forum will testify - make sure you request a copy of the assessment report as soon as you can; this will give you some idea what to expect.
Good luck and best wishes,
Wendy
I just wanted to say how much I agree with everything BIS has written, even though I completely understand your daughter's point of view. At the time of my son's first PIP assessment (which was face-to-face), I made the mistake of thinking the assessor would immediately spot his problems because most people do - autism is not, unfortunately, an invisible disability.
I don't wish to alarm you unnecessarily because I hope it goes well for you, but the assessment is certainly not a formality - it is probably the most important part of the process because most decision makers follow the assessor's report to the letter and do not appear to look at any other evidence.
I did not realise at the time that, as his appointee, I could have spoken on behalf of my son, and I made the same mistake with his second assessment, which was a telephone assessment - as soon as the assessor realised he was in the room with me, she insisted on speaking to him and would not listen to anything I had to say.
Over the years, I have found that most people who work for the DWP understand the role of an appointee, but assessors tend to ignore it if they can and will insist they must speak directly to the claimant. Next time, I hope to be more careful.
I mustn't go on and on because I've posted many times about this before (people will be bored with hearing from me!) and this is only my personal opinion. Whatever you decide to do, if it goes well, you can give yourself a pat on the back and relax for a while, but if not, you will wish you'd done things differently; don't beat yourself up about it. There are no certainties with PIP because it's very much down to the luck of the draw. Even if the assessor seems sympathetic, there are no guarantees, as many people on the forum will testify - make sure you request a copy of the assessment report as soon as you can; this will give you some idea what to expect.
Good luck and best wishes,
Wendy
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