If you find yourself having to appeal a decision about your PIP entitlement to an independent tribunal, you have the right to appoint a representative to represent you at any hearing you are asked to take part in.
The representative can be a friend, relative or a professional, such as a welfare rights worker. Their role is to help you prepare for your appeal and to present your case as the hearing. If your representative is a friend or relative, their role might simply be to help you understand the hearing and to provide moral support.
If you have a professional representative, such as a welfare rights worker from an advice agency or support service, their role is likely to be a little different. This might involve:
- Advising you about the tribunal process and the rules about how tribunals work. They might also give you advice about whether your appeal has a good chance of success or not.
- Helping you to collect evidence that might support your case, for example helping you to request medical evidence or supporting letters and sending these to the tribunal.
- Sending in a written submission setting out your case to help the Tribunal focus on the PIP activities that you think you should have scored points for.
- Supporting you to present your case at the hearing. This could involve asking you questions to help you explain to the tribunal the key points of your case.
Is a representative the same as an appointee?
A representative is very different to an appointee. If you are not able to deal with your PIP claim yourself, for example because you have a learning disability, you can have someone as your appointee. This means they act in your place when it comes to your PIP claim, for example letters about your claim will be addressed to them and they can ring PIP on your behalf without you being present. They can also submit a PIP mandatory reconsideration or appeal for you.
At a tribunal, an appointee can speak in your place. A representative’s role is different. They are there to help you present your case, but they won’t be allowed to answer the questions on your behalf.
Do I have to tell the tribunal who my representative will be?
If you know who your representative will be before you submit your appeal, you can include their details on your SSCS1 appeal form.
If you decide to have a representative at a later stage, you should contact the Tribunals Service using the details on the letters they send about your appeal to tell them who your representative will be.
If you haven’t told the Tribunals Service who your representative is, but you take someone with you as a representative on the day of your hearing, they should still allow that person to represent you. If the tribunal refuse to allow you to have a representative, this is likely to give you grounds to challenge any decision they make on your case.
