Assessment report form and tribunal route

Hi Wendy Woo

Welcome to the forum.

You might want to have a look at the following FAQ which explains where everything is; www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/guides-for-claimants/faq/forum.

I've moved your post to its own topic, we ask members not to post their questions in other member's topics as it can lead to the wrong advice being given or taken.

The award is quite long for PIP, they are usually around 2 - 3 years.

As you have the assessment report you will have a better understanding of how the DWP Decision Maker has come to their conclusions and you will now be able to argue against them.

I usually use a highlighter to highlight any inaccuracies, once you have gone through the report you then set out why you are applying for a MR and go through each descriptor one at a time why you disagree with the assessor and try and match it with any supporting documents you may have sent in.

Understand that the assessor is offering an opinion when they say 'in my opinion' you can do the PIP activities, tackling these head-on is unlikely to be successful, you need to show that the basis of that opinion is founded on incorrect information, so try and refer to your evidence to undermine what they have said, remember they are just an opinion which is not based on fact.

Also, try and stick to issues that lead to your scoring points, I often hear members referring to the assessors spelling, as an example, whilst it may show a lack of professionalism, raising it as an issue isn't going to help you get an award.

Your primary task is to show that you meet the criteria, there are many reasons you may have failed, you need to address each of these but don't get bogged down in criticising the assessment report unless you can clearly show that it is incorrect, it is a lot easier to argue the facts of the situation.

Lastly, make sure that you understand the criteria that you are being assessed against you can put the best case forward that is possible but you won't score points if you do not meet the PIP Descriptors.

The first stage to challenging a Decision is for you to request a Mandatory Reconsideration, this needs to be done in writing to the DWP, within one month of the Decision, to the office that dealt with your claim, have a look at our PIP MR & Appeal guide; benefitsandwork.co.uk/guides-for-claimants/pip

For the CRMR1 form to initiate your MR; www.gov.uk/government/publications/chall...ork-and-pensions-dwp

If your son was awarded the standard daily living component then your Carers Allowance will stay in place.

Only you can decide whether or not to apply for a Mandatory Reconsideration. If you do decide to apply for a Mandatory Reconsideration, your payments will stay in place.

When you have a better idea of the issues with your claim, come back to the forum and we will do our best to help.

Gary

Hi Wendy Woo

I have moved your post - We ask people not to ask questions on other people's posts as there is a risk of people getting the wrong answers.

I'm sorry that your son's award has been reduced. Only you can decide whether to put in for a Mandatory Reconsideration. There are three possible scenarios

1) the MR is unsuccessful and his current award continues (the majority of MRs about 73% are unsuccessful
2) The MR is successful and his award is returned to enhanced care and standard mobility (about 27% successful)
3) The MR is unsuccessful and his current award is reduced. (This is not common - There are no figures for this and I have only known it to happen on two occasions - in cases that were very unusual.)

Is it worth you putting in for an MR? Only you can decide. The people who win - will always say it's worth it. Those that lose either give up or they continue onto appeal where they have a far greater chance of winning. If you were to win - you cannot guarantee that the length of the award would still be six years.

You asked the question, "what is the point in filling out details if no one is going to pay attention to it?" What you have to remember is the assessor is simply giving their opinion. It hurts every claimant when the assessor disagrees with them. In your son's case the assessor must have taken some of it on board as they gave the time frame of six years and he still has an award. Those with autism often struggle to get the awards they deserve, and we have certainly had members recently who have lost theirs. The decision maker is a non-medical person, and they generally follow the guidance from the assessor.

Should you put in for a Mandatory Reconsideration? Only you can decide that, but I have known people in a similar position to you who have continued the fight.

You have one month from the date on the decision letter to put in for a Mandatory Reconsideration. If you have missed this deadline you need to put in a request to submit a late Mandatory Reconsideration which you can do up to 12 months after the date on the decision letter. You have to say why you didn't meet the first deadline. (ill health, or not understanding the system are common reasons people give).

If you still provide your son with 35 hours of care a week, your carers allowance should not be at risk.

BIS

Sorry Wendy

I moved the post, and Gary answered it, and we were unaware that we were both writing simultaneously. This sometimes happens - but hence why you have two replies.

BIS