SO CONFUSED

hello.
sorry for what will b a very long post im afraid.
i have ME/CFS with fluctuating conditions although i have never seen any specialist about it except my gp. he says yeh i probably have it but there is no tests that can b done so i feel foolish telling people i have m.e.when i dont feel iv been properly diagnosed.
i also have mental health issues & am bipolar.
anyway i have just been put in the wrag group without a medical with both contribution based AND income-related entitlement, which i find strange.
they also sent a letter stating that as i was on contribution based esa, if the law got changed with the new bill, it would stop after 12months.
when i called today they said that would not affect me as im also on income-related esa, so why send the letter then?
i am thinking of appealing 2 b moved in2 the support group, i requested copys of the esa65 & esa85a from DWP today. i saw my gp today & he said he had filled out his report to them with all my symptoms so i shall have 2 wait & see how many point i got etc. i asked him for a copy of his report the esa113 form & he said i had 2 request it from DWP, so i called back tonight, & spent 20mins listening 2 music waiting 2 speak 2 some1, only for a very rude man 2 say that his report would b part of the esa65 & esa85a i had already requested.
my award letter also said that "you may also be required to attend a work-focused health related assessment with a health care professional". i assume thats the dreaded attos medical? but when i questioned them on the phone today about this they said i wouldnt have 2 attend as the decision had already been made without seeing me, so again ehy include it on the letter?
i really dont feel well enough to attend the work-focused interviews apart from my m.e. my mental health is not good & i have borderline personality disorder which makes me quite anti-social & i have panic attacks.
im terrified 2 appeal incase i loose the esa iv been awarded already & get put on jobseekers allowance. i assume an appeal would mean a defenit attos mediacal & to all intents i look normal & healthy from any1 looking at me so i was so relieved not 2 have 2 attend the medical.
does the following warning get said at all the appeals then, would i b given the chance 2 withdraw my appeal & would that go against me also?

“It is important that you realise that we have the power to increase an award, to leave the award as it is, or to remove it altogether. We have not yet made a decision on your appeal and will not do so until we have heard all the evidence but from the evidence in the papers/given by you today it seems to us that your existing award may be at risk if you go ahead with the appeal. We are therefore going to give you some time to consider what you want to do.”

Then the three options - adjourning to another day to seek advice, withdrawing the appeal or proceeding with the hearing – should be explained clearly to him. If asked, there is no harm in pointing out which evidence has given rise to the doubt.

also speaking 2 my doctor today he said 2 expect that the support group will b scrapped altogether soon. i dont know he knows something we dont or if he was just speculating on the state of the country just now.

i lastt thing, if i appeal, & if or when i have 2 get the medical, do i send the standard letter u supplied for recording the medical re mr singh?

so many questions & doubts, i live in scotland & apart from my local CAB iv no idea who else 2 turn 2. this site has been a godsend so far.

sorry again for the large post.

any advice would b wonderfull.
many thanks

martin

Hi greeneyedlad

The ESA113 is an entirely separate report to the ESA68/85. If you do not receive it you can specifically request it from JCP in writing.

The work-focused health-related assessment was suspended last year and at present does not take place. I suspect that the DWP haven't changed the wording of their letters.

If you appeal you may be required to attend a medical. The warning you quoted is only given by tribunals who are considering reducing an award, but you will have a chance of withdrawing your appeal should you receive it. There is probably just a small risk that the DWP could reduced the award on reconsideration but the case would then pass to the appeal tribunal.

When you doctor suggested that the support group will soon be scrapped, it sounds like he was talking light-heartedly about the state of the country; there is no likelihood of the support group being scrapped in the near future.

Hope this helps

Derek

thamk u so much for ur advice Derek.

ok i'l ring the DWP again about the ESA113 if i dont recieve it . i knew i was in the right & he was so cheeky & adament.

thanks, i thought id b required 2 attend a medical if i appeal. thats what terrifies me but i guess they count on that.

im just scared that they think if i have enough of a mind 2 appeal then i must b better than i said i was, which is most days i cant even get out of bed with m.e. pain & bipolar depression.

& if i appeal & then withdraw it, it will count against me anyway?

if i am required 2 go for the medical if i appeal, should i send the standard letter re. mr singh, provided by B&W asking that it b recorded? has any1 else done this successfully?

do u know why i would b getting BOTH income & contribution based ESA?

do u know of any face 2 face help i could get in Scotland or who could represent me at an appeal other than CAB? i think its different in Scotland than England?!

thanks so much again, i do not know what i would have done without this website. so so worth the smallmembership fee.

martin

Hi greeneyedlad

It's not absolutely certain that you will be required to attend a medical. A decision could be made on the paper evidence but it is quite possible that you would have a medical.

Although tribunals sometimes make judgements on an appellant based on how the present written and oral evidence on appeal, the mere act of appealing (or having the cheek to appeal) can never be used against an appellant - it is a legal right.

It's entirely up to you whether you send the standard letter requesting that the medical is recorded. I'm only aware of one person who was given permission to record the medical, see here .

Depending on personal circumstances and income some claimants on CR-ESA also get an IR-ESA top-up.

I'm afraid I don't know of any national welfare rights organizations in Scotland other than the CAB. There may be local advice centres that you can try looking up in the phone book or googling.

Good luck

Derek

Derek

thanks again for ur reply.

yes im getting a £2.10 top-up payment on my esa. i gather this is so my esa is not less than my current incapacity & income support. so this is the income-based part of my esa is it? ok.

i dont think i'l b sending the letter 2 request any medical is recorded if im asked 2 attend 1. the 1 case that did get permission that u highlighted sounded like an absolute nightmare.

cheers

martin