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Appeal Won and now ESA50 has arrived today

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7 years 2 weeks ago #183531 by Rumplestiltskin
Appeal Won and now ESA50 has arrived today was created by Rumplestiltskin
My wife was in receipt of Incapacity Benefit (Contribution Based) which changed to ESA and she was placed in WRAG. Thanks to the fabulous advice and guidance on this site, I was able to speak for her at an appeal held at the local Magistrate's Court and the decision was to place her in the Support Group. That was in the summer of 2013 and we have lived in peace until Form ESA50 was delivered today. We will complete the questionnaire using the guidance you have so competently prepared as her condition has not improved (she had to give up work as a result of a serious assault at work leaving her with a multiple muscular/skeletal issues). My question is, is there any rhyme or reason which indicates the likelihood or otherwise that she will have to attend another assessment? - she is already become quite anxious and it's only been hours since the form arrived.

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7 years 1 week ago #183570 by Gordon
Replied by Gordon on topic Appeal Won and now ESA50 has arrived today
Rumplestiltskin

First of all make sure you use the current ESA Claim guides there have been changes to the DWP guidance in the last couple of years that you may need to be aware of.

It is now Maximus who are doing the assessments, not ATOS, they seem to be more likely to require a face to face, especially where the last assessment was done on paper. However this does not mean that they will require your wife to attend, as the decision is made primarily on the level of information supplied in and an with the ESA50.

If face to face assessment is required then you may be able arrange for it to be held in your home but you will require your GP to write to Maximus explaining why she cannot attend at their offices.

If you have further questions then please reply to this post and we will do our best to help.

Gordon

Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems

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6 years 11 months ago #185241 by Rumplestiltskin
Replied by Rumplestiltskin on topic Appeal Won and now ESA50 has arrived today
I have at last completed the paperwork using the guidance you supplied. It was really, really useful having this to hand question by question. It triggered things I had previously overlooked e.g. she'll ask me to dry her hair because she cannot hold the dryer to her head - that's in the "Use this Space" along with a whole host of other examples such as "She cannot mash potatoes" and "She cannot turn the electric iron 90% to its rest position because of the pain". I suddenly realised that since these issues have been with her for so long we have just taken it for granted as part of being a couple and didn't realise this could be translated into examples to use in the form. We had previously concentrated on the bigger health issues (They are still going in, obviously).
As far as a home visit goes, that could be problematic as she has told me that she is not prepared to welcome "Nazis" into our home. If it goes to a f2f, I will suss out the location first and take it from there. Once more - great site, so keep up the great work.
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6 years 10 months ago #188137 by Rumplestiltskin
Replied by Rumplestiltskin on topic Appeal Won and now ESA50 has arrived today
Update - Assessment was scheduled for 3 May but today a letter has arrived cancelling the appointment due to "unforeseen circumstances" with no indication as to another date.
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6 years 8 months ago #192386 by Rumplestiltskin
Replied by Rumplestiltskin on topic Appeal Won and now ESA50 has arrived today
After 2 more cancellations, f2f eventually held at the assessment centre.
Wife received a telephone call at 5.50pm today. She was given a phone number and told to call the number and go and sign on for JSA tomorrow. Told that her benefit stopped from today. Told a letter was in the post. Also told that she had scored ZERO points. Interesting, as apart from the paperwork submitted, at the assessment she was asked to lie down on a couch. To get on the couch involved 2 steps with no hand rail. I was forbidden to assist her and she couldn't manage the steps. She was told by the assessor to sit down and "we will not bother with any more physical exams." Interestingly, the phone caller end the call with the statement "And after all, you are in receipt of an occupational pension." This is a small deferred pension from the employer prior to the employment which led to her being assaulted. Since she was originally on Contribution based benefit, is her meagre pension a factor which counts now? I assume next step is to ask for a mandatory review?
Cheers.

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6 years 8 months ago #192398 by Gordon
Replied by Gordon on topic Appeal Won and now ESA50 has arrived today
Rumplestiltskin

No her pension is not a factor is awarding ESA.

The first stage to challenging a Decision is for you to request a Mandatory Reconsideration, this needs to be done in writing to the DWP, within one month of the Decision, to the office that dealt with your claim, have a look at our ESA MR & Appeal guide for details of the process, the ESA area also has template letters that you can use to make the request with.

www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/help-for-claimants/esa1

You should contact the DWP for a copy of the assessment report if you have not already done so, I would phone them but again follow up the request in writing. Once you have the assessment report you will have a better understanding of how the DWP Decision Maker has come to their conclusions and will then be able to argue against them.

Your primary task is to show that you meet the criteria, there are many reasons you may have failed, you need to address each of these but don't get bogged down in criticising the assessment report unless you can clearly show that it is incorrect, it is a lot easier to argue the facts of the situation;

"the assessor recorded that I walked 50m, I did but they have failed to document that I had to stop every 10m for a rest due to breathlessness"

than their opinions

"based on my observations of the claimant walking I believe that they can reliably walk more than 200m.

When you have a better idea of the issues with your claim, come back to the forum and we will do our best to help.

Gordon

Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems

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