ESA Appeal

hi, should I wait until august when I have to fill my ESA50 form in to appeal or should I do it now? Im currently in the WRAG but going to appeal to be put in the support group.
Thanks A lot Gill

hi Gordon,sorry for my lack of information as I,m not used to all this,i am entitled to both contribution-based and income-related esa,thanks for any advice and help,Gill.

thanks for that but I,m still none the wiser on whether I should appeal now or wait,as going to wfi and courses have sent my depression spiroling which then flairs up the all my other illnesses so its a vicious circle,thanks gill.

Gillian wrote: thanks for that but I,m still none the wiser on whether I should appeal now or wait,as going to wfi and courses have sent my depression spiroling which then flairs up the all my other illnesses so its a vicious circle,thanks gill.

Hi G,

Your options :

You could appeal the original adverse decision to place you in The WRAG.

This should be done within one month of the date of the WRAG award decision notice letter that you should have received.

If more than one month has elapsed you can make a late appeal up to 13 months after this date.

However, you would have to show good cause for a late appeal, and only The Tribunal have discretion on whether to allow it.

This is covered in The GL24 Form which can be downloaded from the link on this page :

How to submit an appeal

From our :

Appeals FAQ’s

If you do appeal. they will re-look at whether you should have been placed into The SG at the date of the adverse WRAG decision.

If your conditions have deteriorated since the time of the WRAG decision, or you suffer from new conditions that now mean that you should qualify for The SG, you can request a supersession/review of the WRAG award.

Any resulting decision as a result of a review would only be in force from the time of the superseding decision, whereas any decision made as a result of an appeal, or automatic reconsideration on appealing would be backdated to the time of the adverse WRAG award.

Any subsequent ESA reassessment would supercede any of the decisions made under either an appeal or supersession.

See : ESA FAQ’s

There is also an ESA Appeals Guide, here :

ESA Claims Guides

Therefore, if you managed to gain access to The SG as a result of an appeal or reconsideration, it would be backdated to the time of the WRAG award, hence it will be as if you have never been in The WRAG.

If you are placed in the SG as the result of a supersession, or a future reassessment, that SG status will only exist from that time.

See also :

Do I have to attend WFIs while I appeal?

What will I be paid while I appeal?

Work Focussed Interviews

Work Programme

Changes to ESA Sanctions

WFi's can be deferred, carried out over the phone, or even in your home. However this is at the discretion of The JCP Adviser, and is not a legal right.

They should take into account your medical conditions and resulting limitations with regards to the above.

bro58