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- richard matthews
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5 years 8 months ago #216453 by richard matthews
ESA was created by richard matthews
I have been in the ESA support group for the last 10 years+. Today, after recently having an assessment, I have been informed that I now do not qualify. I am at a loss to understand this. The mental stress has made my situation much much worse. I'm at my wits end and don't really know what to do first. My benefit has been stopped with immediate effect and I don't know how I'm going to manage. What can I do? This has made me feel suicidal.
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- Gordon
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5 years 8 months ago #216459 by Gordon
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Replied by Gordon on topic ESA
R
Welcome to the forum, you might want to have a look at the following FAQ which explains where everything is
Welcome to Benefits and Work
In case you are not aware, your real name appears to be showing in the forum, if you want to change this then follow the instructions in the following FAQ
My full name is showing, how can I stop it?
First of all, if your health is at issue please speak to your GP or any of the organisations that support people in your situation.
Do you know how you qualified for the SG previously? Did you have up to date medical evidence to support your reassessment?
Please do not claim Universal Credit, if available in your area, without getting face to face advice first, doing so may disadvantage you and will mean that you cannot return to ESA, even if the Decision is revised in your favour
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 (ESA85), 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.
Welcome to the forum, you might want to have a look at the following FAQ which explains where everything is
Welcome to Benefits and Work
In case you are not aware, your real name appears to be showing in the forum, if you want to change this then follow the instructions in the following FAQ
My full name is showing, how can I stop it?
First of all, if your health is at issue please speak to your GP or any of the organisations that support people in your situation.
Do you know how you qualified for the SG previously? Did you have up to date medical evidence to support your reassessment?
Please do not claim Universal Credit, if available in your area, without getting face to face advice first, doing so may disadvantage you and will mean that you cannot return to ESA, even if the Decision is revised in your favour
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 (ESA85), 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.
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
The following user(s) said Thank You: richard matthews
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