pip letter received today no award

It is very frustrating to get a nil award, especially when one takes such a long time going through the form and being complete as possible. Wanted to say that I got a nil award too but there is hope in the Mandatory Reconsideration process. As others have said, ask for the assessor's report first to see what they have reported back to DWP. The report I got back was like they had sent someone else's report. So many inaccuracies on every single activity. After the reconsideration I got standard daily living and enhanced mobility. Just take your time reading throug the assessor's report and noting all the inaccuracies between that and your PIP form. Of course, it goes without saying that the B&W guides are very thorough in guiding you through the activities. If you're like me, I couldn't handle much of going through the form in a day so I started at the first question and focused on 1 activity every 2 days or so. It then didn't seem such a daunting task. I hope you get the reward you deserve and need. xx

hi
thanks for all your advice
so i have received the assesment report and have been going through it.as i said i didnt have an assesment it was all paper based although i received a call from the health practioner who said it was to clarify a few points.i wasnt in the right frame of mind to be honest when she called as it had been my dads funeral the day before but i thought it was only going to be a short phone call.however it lasted over 30 mins with her going on and on about mobility and how far i can walk,can i do this,can i walk this far without stoppping and the like so it felt like a telephone assesment to be fair.getting on to the report itself the main reason i ever applied for PIP was for the mobility side.i had previously applied in 2014 but was awarded nothing but now 8 years down the line my condition has got progressively worse. i was diagnosed in 2012 with Charcot Marie Tooth and an acoustic neuroma(benign brain tumour)which causes balance issues and severe pain that i get in my feet and legs.this also caused because of the way i walk to have a meniscal tear injury in my right knee so that is painful when i walk as well and because of severe weak tendons my feet turn inwards so all of my weight(i am 6ft 4 and 17stone)goes on the outside edge of both my feet.i wear specially made insoles to try and help with the pain and ankle supports but i do get some relief but it still gives me a great deal of pain as the day goes on and the more i am on my feet the worse it gets.i still work but only 4 days a week as i had to reduce my hours because of my condition.i am a baker and have been for 34 years so it involves me being on my feet and moving about for 7.5 hours a day(mon,wed,fri,sat.)i stagger my days so i can rest inbetween.The moving around activity on the form the assesor put down 'move more than 50 metres but no more than 200 'and her reasons for doing so were because my consultants letter had shown that i said my orthotics had benefited me(which i dont dispute they have)that my walking gait and pain will continue to improve with the use of orthotics.in that same consultant letter it also states due to my significant weakness of my peroneal tendons with weakness of tib ant that i would require fairly major surgery to improve this situation(surgery being tendon transfer to try and bring my foot round in a straighter position).i said on the phone call when she asked me if i could walk around a supermarket with an aid.i said yes but i would be leaning on the trolley trying to take as much weight off my feet and would still be in pain.i also said repeatedly that my pain gets worse as the day goes on and she noted in
her report that my pain gets more severe as the day goes on. so if i did have to go to a shop and walk round it it would be within 1 0r 2 hours of me getting up when my pain is manageable(not sure i told her that on the phone cant remember).i couldnt go and walk round a shop without being in considerable pain after a shift at work for instance.also in the other descriptor she said that whilst more than 200m has been considered the telephone call suggests ability to walk 400 metres max including breaks ,the evidence from phone call showing this is at a slow pace and he would struggle to repeat this activity and FE(further evidence)from consultant letter confirming weak tendons indicates that he would be unable to complete this distance reliably.
I just feel that the severity of my condition hasnt been taken seriusly enough.i said on my pip form that i put down because of the severe pain that i get in my feet i feel that as the day goes on and the pain gets worse i cannot walk more than 20 metres without being in severe pain.with the reliabily descriptor would that not come under to an acceptable standard?i feel that because ive said i can walk round a supermarket with leaning on a trolley the assesor has assumed that i can do that at any time in the day which i cant.The impact that would have on my fatigue and pain if i did it on my day off when i need those days to rest and recover would be that i would be so tired and worn out from that trip i wouldnt do anything for the rest of the day.would that not come under 'repeatedly' under the reliably descriptor as if i went out again later on that day after doing a walk round a supermarket i couldnt manage walking without being in severe pain.Do they even take pain into consideration when they are deciding??
In regards to Daily Living i scored 6 points for washing,dressing,and toilet with using an aid but i thought i might of received 2 points for preparing a meal as i said in my application i use a stool if i did prepare a meal in the evening as my pain is severe and would have to keep shifting weight while holding on to something to try and relieve the pain so i sit down for my own safety and help with my pain.i said that i could prepare breakfast within 1 or 2 hours of getting up when my pain is manageable.the assesor said that my abilty to work 4 days a week and can stand for 20-30 mins at work without a break is an adequate length of time to complete this activity.however i can stand 20-30 mins at work before i need a sitting down break of 5 mins but that length of time as my shift goes on gets less and less and its not practical for me to skeep sitting down every 5 mins or so later on in my shift so i just work through the pain and the assesor knows that as the day goes on my pain gets more severe which as was noted in her report 'having to put my feet up to completely offload pressure on my feet.often after work he will be very fatigued and in significant pain'so i couldnt do that activity repeatedly as its not unreasonable to expect to prepare a meal in the evening.If i did that then i would have to use a stool because the pain is severe and for me to do it safetly i would have to sit down.i noted that in my first application for pip back in 2014 that for preparing food that 1b)needs to use an aid was recommended although i suppose that doesnt hold any meaning for my latest one.
theres other bits that the assesor has assumed like listening to other people because of my acoustic neuroma i am hard of hearing in my right ear and i have constant tinnitus.i put down on my application that i struggle hearing conversations if theres a lot of background noise or many conversations going on but because i spoke to her on the phone(holding it up to my good ear)that i can hear,understand and respond.

So sorry for the long post but from looking through this forum i know there are a lot of knowledgeable people on here that would know the best way of approaching the Mandatory request as im not sure to be honest as im just a bit angry at how this health practioner(who was a nurse),who has probably never heard of charcot marie tooth(as a lot of people havent)and had to look up basic symptoms knows how i struggle moving about about without even seeing me!i know i sent a lot of evidence in in regards to it but no report can ever be as accurate as seeing how that person moves
regards
chris

Hi chri5hill, just want to sympathise about the Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease. It's only one in 2,500 so a cert that few assessors will have heard of it. We have a friend who thinks this is the cause of her dire foot problems, but she has terrible trouble getting the NHS to take any interest, this is why I felt I had to comment.
A cynic would adapt my dad's saying, which was "those who can, do; those who can't, teach." Now this is unfair to many competent and dedicated teachers. But my, and friends' experience of assessors might lead to " those who can, nurse/physio etc, those who can't, work as assessors"!
I hope that gives you a smile and some energy to write up your MR. Much of what you need to put, I think you have covered in your post. You do not count as being capable of the descriptor activities unless you can do them to an acceptable standard. Being in pain like yours is not acceptable even though you do work through it to carry on. And repeatably which you are not, as you are having to stagger your days to keep going. So emphasize all that.
You need to phone ASAP to ask for the PA3 which is the assessor's report. Check through with a highlighter for all that's wrong.
Be very careful in what you write for the MR not to say they lied. Keep it neutral eg 'appears not to have noted that...'

Personally I think it's also fair to put in, if it looks like it's gone against you, that anything taken from the phone call should be discounted due to your state of emotional distress on the day after your Father's funeral. And you did not have anyone to support you during this call which you would have arranged for if they had given you fair notice of it [as they have to for an assessment].

And by the way so sorry for your loss.
Keep us posted, Denby

Hi CHRIS,
in my opinion the only reason not to go for a mandatory reconsideration would be if there was a risk of them lowering your reward and as they’ve not given you anything you have nothing to lose. There are a lot of success stories on here that have gone from nil to a substantial award following mandatory reconsiderations and appeals.
I am about to ask for a mandatory reconsideration for my award and have just been reading through the guide on here for how to challenge a medical report,
www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/?dlp=633678609fe8e#page18 (Hoping link works)
it’s full of invaluable tips and advice. I think the fact that it was telephone assessed after your dads funeral is very relevant here and that guide will give you a really good bit of text you can use.
I just want to say that I’ve done 3 of these in the last few months, a pip review in July, a mandatory reconsideration for that, then I had a change in circumstance form to fill in recently (which I’m about to launch a mandatory reconsideration request for ) and in EVERY SINGLE INSTANCE they have sent the letter 2 weeks after the date, as you say, losing out on valuable time to gather evidence and fill in long forms etc. I believe this is a tactic by them to discourage and make it difficult for anyone to continue the process. You can ring them and ask for an extension which they will most likely give you (but don’t count on that, start the process now if you decide to do it) bear in mind if you phone to say you want to do a mandatory reconsideration they might do it there and then with you on the phone, they did that to me and it took me by surprise. If you don’t want that to happen maybe write and tell them (signed for delivery of course!)
Finally good luck with everything, I hope you get the help you obviously deserve.
Best wishes
Lesley

Thank you Denby
I was referred to a London specialist when I was diagnosed with CMT back in 2010 but that was more due to me hounding the doctor for a referral.my mum had passed away from MND 2 years earlier and my dad had CMT so I wanted to know what was wrong really as I had problems since my teenage years.
In regards to the pip refusal I cannot see how the reliably criteria applies on some of the assesors reasons for various activities as I was very clear that as the day goes on the pain and fatigue gets worse.I’ve got a couple of weeks before my deadline is up so the plan is to tackle each activity I didn’t score anything on and explain why I think the reliably criteria is not met.hopefully that will be enough to make a change to the decision but if not then it will be a tribunal.
Regards
Chris