Decision letter query

Hi,

Happy new year to you all. I spoke to DWP on Friday and was told that I had been assessed for ESA three times over the course of my claim, which started in November 2010. Decisions were made on 24th Feb 2011, 22nd Jan 2012 and 12th April 2013. All 3 assessments resulted in being kept in the WRAG until I asked for a reconsideration of the April decision and DWP revised it and placed me in the SG.

A query arises because I'm not sure that DWP ever gave me a written decision notice for the decision made on 22nd Jan 2012, and if that is the case, I believe a House of Lords ruling means that I can still appeal it even though the 13 month limit has expired.

The only possible letter I have that might refer to a decision is one that was sent on 30th Aug 2012 (remember, the decision was made in January of that year) but I'm not sure if it's a notice for the decision of 22nd Jan 2012 or merely a reiteration of the decision of 24th Feb 2011, as the letter refers to the amount of money I received whilst on the assessment rate (i.e. prior to the first decision), and quotes the dates of 8th Nov 2010 and 7th Feb 2011.

I've uploaded a redacted copy of a couple of pages here and here . Could someone please give their opinion as to whether this is a decision notice for the decision made on 24th Feb 2011 or 22nd Jan 2012, as I am really confused? The dates and amounts clearly relate to the assessment rate which came before the first decision of Feb 2011, but I don't know why DWP would send me such a letter in Aug 2012, considering I'd already been in the WRAG for a year already and consequently hadn't been on the assessment rate for over a year.

Thanks in advance.

Thanks Gordon. I don't doubt that the letter is a decision letter - but the dates and rates etc seem to suggest it was a notification of the decision of February 2011 rather than the decision of January 2012, even though it was sent in August 2012.

Do you know, if the records aren't available anymore, does that work in the favour of DWP or the claimant? i.e. is the burden of proof on DWP to present evidence that a letter had been sent, or is it up to the claimant to prove that one hadn't arrived? If the latter, how could a claimant feasibly do that?

Would you suggest that the best thing to do is to send an appeal request to DWP stating that I never received a decision and see what they say? No harm in trying, I suppose?

The plot thickens!

Keep in mind I'm in the Support Group and have been since 2013. I've not even received an ESA50 since December 2012, so it's impossible for them to have reassessed me. I'm due to be reassessed in April 2015 according to their records.

Today I received another letter (dated 5th January 2015) from DWP stating that they'd looked again at my claim following a mythical recent change.

I've uploaded the letter in full (personal details redacted): Page 1 , Page 2 , Page 3 , Page 4 .

Once again it refers to "a decision on your capability for work. You have been placed in the Work Related Activity Group" (dates mentioned are Nov 2010 - Feb 2011). It then goes on to say from 2013 my rate "will be" (i.e. future tense, even though it's 2015) the SG rate because of "a decision on your capability for work. You have been moved from the Work Related Activity Group to the Support Group".

With me so far? The letter first stated that I'd been placed in the WRAG after a decision on my capability for work in 2011, and then moved to the SG after another decision on my capability for work in 2013.

But the kicker is the final paragraph on page 1: "We have decided that you have potential for work related activity and must take part in work-focused interviews with a personal adviser to continue to receive Employment and Support Allowance in full"! But I'm in the SG!

Page 4 of the letter gives a breakdown of income as it was in 2010-2011, i.e. the assessment rate. Curiously though, page 3 explains that if I disagree with the decision on page 1, I have a month to send in a MR and that I have the right to appeal. The question is, the right to appeal which decision? Technically, the letter notifies me of two decisions, even though I've not been reassessed since 2013 and both decisions are older than the absolute maximum limit of 13 months. Given the reference to WFIs, I am wondering if this is intended to be a decision notification of the initial WRAG placement, and if so, have DWP opened up a new opportunity for me to send in an appeal (as I feel I should have always been in the SG) even though that decision was made in 2010, as page 3 suggests I can appeal the decision within a month of the date of the letter (5th January 2015)?

I've contacted my local Welfare Rights team about the fact that it says I need to attend WFIs and they are going to investigate with DWP for me, but I'm sure knowing the way DWP operate, it'll take quite some time to hear back from them (possibly longer than the month-long window to send in a MR). Meanwhile, I'm quite anxious about this, because it's saying I have to go for WFIs even though I'm in the SG.

Can anyone offer any advice please?