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ESA QUESTIONS PLEASE HELP

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6 years 2 months ago #203706 by mum0f6
ESA QUESTIONS PLEASE HELP was created by mum0f6
Hi All

I have my Esa assessment next week (not first) been on IB & ESA since summer of 2004 unlikely to work again. Have obviously had medical assessments previously and sat in with my son and husband for theirs. I didn't have to attend assessment (last medical was a few years back now) so award of ESA was done on basis of my questionnaire alone. I have been in support group for a long time. my husband thinks I should go to my appointment in my electric wheelchair for the which I need to use the chair for shopping, trips to hospital etc (during my daughters stays on children's ward I take my chair in and keep it by the bed over night). Shorter distances such as going in to see GP I use a stick. What is everyone's opinion on this.......This is assuming my husband can park nearby (drop me off at door - Wolverhampton centre). I have a wide chair as I am on the larger side of life (my claim is not based on obesity though), so I have doubts my chair would fit in their lift. My thinking is that when I have to stand in the waiting room it will show clearly that I struggle to get moving whereas I know if I go in my chair and they do their usual oh we don't have to do the examination if you don't want to or will find it painful. My husband was put into Work group despite the fact he has degenerative disc disease and discs going in his neck that could cause paralysis. He's just had to send in his assessment on Boxing Day too so hoping common sense will prevale and they will put him into support group because the slightest movement/sneeze could cause paralysis or at the very least he's been told he mig never walk after surgery or may have to learn to walk again and surgery involves going through his throat, not his only problem he has other problems too. He had a shattered disc in his lower back back in 2004 that did unknown damage. We have been followed and videoed and they tried to fit him up for fraud in 2006 on his DLA but we won the case as the assessor agreed his claim was only ever on the basis that he is in constant pain not that he couldn't walk a certain distance. which is what they kept trying to get him to say. When my husband was moved from DLA to PIP he lost a lot he was on HRM & LRC but he's on lower rate of mobility now and obviously lower rate of care as he can no longer have a car and we had to change it over to me. I challenged it but it was pointless. Now I don't know whether to reapply based on his current diagnosis or wait until PIP renewal. It's so unfair. Then my son had his ESA taken away, he developed ME/CFS at 14 and in turn depression and hypersomnia. His epilepsy returned in August 2016 after a gap of 18 years and I went to his ESA Medical and there were out right lies on his medical even down to saying that he had said he was learning to drive but he had to put learning to drive on hold because the fits had returned. I requested mandatory reconsideration for both my husband and my son and both were rejected. we are about to send off ESA application for my son with GP Sicknote.....brand new application after him being off it in excess of a year. Can anyone tell me if they would reject it or how long it takes to get money through, also how long would it take for his first medical based on history. He's at college by the way and on PIP. He's now got to remain on epilepsy medication because now he has gone his 12 months fit free he can start learning to drive and if he stopped medication he would of course be at risk of loosing his licence if his fits started again.(so he has resigned himself to the fact that he will be on medication for life.

So basically I am asking about 3 different things

1 wheelchair or just use walking stick/crutch for ESA medical next week
2 should we try to get higher rate of PIP based on degenerative disc disease etc
3 having had ESA STOPPED is there any reason why my son can't reapply more than a year later ???

Thanking anyone who offers a ya advice

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6 years 2 months ago #203728 by Gordon
Replied by Gordon on topic ESA QUESTIONS PLEASE HELP
mum0f6

1, It's up to you, if you would normally use a powered chair when outside the house then I would do so for this appointment.

2. PIP is not awarded for a condition, but rather the limitations that result from it, so the question is whether you can reasonably show that your husband cannot reliably walk more than 20m on the majority of days.

3. Your son can only make a new claim for ESA if he can show that he has a new condition or that the conditions that he was assessed with have deteriorated so that there would be a reasonable prospect of an award.

Gordon

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

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