Challenging ESA Medical Report

Recently had a medical re conversion from IB to ESA, notified was put in WRAG. The letter had taken 8 days to get to me due to the Jubilee weekend. Immediately put in an SAR as likely to appeal but phoned DWP to see if any extension to the one month to appeal would be given. Told I had been put in WRAG for 2 years but would get someone to ring back. They phoned me back, told me not to worry about appeal deadline as they knew about postal delays!!! but offered to send out the medical report, it arrived 2 days later.

There are so many inaccuracies, omissions, it is as though he had already decided the outcome before I arrived and only wrote down the comments that supported his view, or conversely wrote everything down and removed the comments that did not support his view. He noted that I was uncomfortable sitting for 20 minutes, had to have help to stand, stood with difficulty for 1 minute but I only met the descriptor for unable to sit/stand for 1 hour. I have upper limb and hand problems but because I passed him a letter from my Physio I am deemed to have no upper limb problems. The detailed evidence from my Physio has been completely ignored. I have found a guide dated 2007 regarding challenging a DLA medical report but nothing for ESA. Any advice would be appreciated.

Don't put all your energy into discrediting the medical report, it is important that you show how you meet the criteria.




Qualifying for the support group


ESa appeals and claims

You will be expected to attend Work Focuses Interviews whilst appealing, although it might be possible to have these conducted over the phone.

Do I have to attend WFIs?

Finally, it is important to remember that there is a risk of losing your current award if you appeal.

Is there any risk to appealing?

My husband got some terrific assistance with his appeal from the local CAB but I went through the work of fiction that was his medical report and picked out the worst of the errors to create a submission for his appeal tribunal. To name but a few of these errors, they got his age wrong, had me helping him to remove his jacket (which was odd as he wasn't wearing one), in a 45 minute assessment he was apparently sitting for 38 minutes and standing for 6 minutes (a total of 44 minutes). As the HCP gave my husband a couch-based assessment lasting at least 20 minutes the timings given were way out! The HCP also had my husband opening the door which he had already opened and was holding open as we walked into the room. How do they get away with it?

Anyway my husband won his appeal (went from 0 to 24 points) and was placed in the WRAG on March 29 2012, then on May 28 2012 we came home from his Rheumy appointment to find an envelope from DWP containing a new ESA50! We saw the CAB again last week and they said they were becoming inundated with similar situations. It was stressful enough last time and we were just beginning to relax again but now we're having to start all over again.