advertisement


DWP Petition

camverton

camverton

pfm Member
I hope no one minds me linking to this petition on the UK Government and Parliament site. Basically it is seeking justice for those who have died as a result of DWP pressure on them when in a vulnerable state of mind.

I don’t suppose it will make much difference, although by raising awareness of the issue it could bring about changes that will offer more protection for vulnerable people in the future.

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/243337
 
good to have this thread , lady i help had her pip stopped . she is very disabled . fortunately she has a barrister as a friend and they got it overturned . unfortunately not everyone has a barrister for a friend
 
hifinutt said:
good to have this thread , lady i help had her pip stopped . she is very disabled . fortunately she has a barrister as a friend and they got it overturned . unfortunately not everyone has a barrister for a friend
Click to expand...

Probably no need for a barrister.

Currently 70% of appeals are being won.
 
Bob McC said:
Probably no need for a barrister.

Currently 70% of appeals are being won.
Click to expand...
Which indicates that many sick people are being unnecessarily put through the considerable stress of appealing. A cynic might think that the aim is that some, rather than make their condition worse, will just drop out of the system and be supported by friends and family.
 
Signed. A person close to me has Aspergers and has recently had their PIP stopped. They’ve lost £500 a month, or thereabouts. They are appealing and I think they’ll win, but they are finding the appeal process massively stressful, due to the Aspergers.
 
I have been involved in benefits advice for 25 years.

Many people make the mistake of getting the forms and filling them in just using the supplied guidance notes.
They also make the mistake of thinking the assessor is on their side, they are not, or that they are qualified to assess them, they are often not.
The DWP regularly employs as assessors people such as physiotherapists or GP nurses or trainees.
Fine medical professionals I am sure but qualified to assess a claimant with Asperger or MS or the after affects of brain surgery?
I think not.

This website offers a wealth of information on applying for benefits.

https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/

A small annual subscription gets access to direct advice for claimants on how to fill in application forms for a variety of benefits. There is a section devoted to PIP applications.
It shows how to fill in each question to maximise your chances of acceptance. It shows what to avoid in answers.

It also gives advice for strategies to follow at the interview.
There should be a large sign explaining your rights to record the interview. I have never seen one. Any audio recording has to be done in duplicate there and then and a copy given to the assessor.
Bugger that for a game of soldiers.

Write everything down.
I always attend with claimants as their advisor, as is their right.
I note the start time and finish time.
I take a note book and transcribe as much of the interview as possible.
This can be invaluable as there are many recorded cases of assessors conclusions being completely at odds with the presented evidence. Examples are given in the website.
As for evidence to send beforehand make sure it is from as highly qualified a source as possible.

If you are turned down the website offers full guidance in the appeal procedure.
If you get to appeal judges look very poorly on lowly qualified assessors overturning the written evidence of a specialist neuro or orthopaedic surgeon.
Last year they rebuked the DWP for what they considered to be malicious, unqualified rejections to the extent they threatened to start fining them if they continued with their policy.

Please pass this on to anyone you know involved in applying for a variety of benefits.
I again recommend the documentation via subscription.
Here it is again

https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/

If nothing else people should sign up to the fortnightly email newsletter that exposes every snidey underhand trick carried out by the DWP and the snakes who have been running that department for years.

It also keeps you updated with every change the DWP bring in to try to disqualify more people. And believe me, they do.
 
Thanks for your post Bob and the work you are doing. The Benefits and Work website is a great resource; needless to say it has been reviled by the Daily Mail.

I think it is all a case of balance. Obviously checks have to be put in place to prevent fraud but not such that they accerbate the conditions of the claimants, particularly when the stress pushes people into a suicidal state of mind which in some cases results in them committing. The equivalent of testing a bolt by tightening it up until it breaks and then backing off a bit. Perhaps sick people should be regarded as being as dispensable as bolts :mad:?

When incapacity benefit was changed to employment support allowance, the government decided on targets in advance with a very small percentage to be fully supported, the next tier to be in a holding pen for future employment with mandatory retraining, even if their current condition makes it all but impossible for them, and a third large proportion of claimant were intended to simply drop out of the system. Ian Duncunt Smith has a lot to answer for, and that he claimed that he had to leave the department because the government wasn’t supporting the sick and disabled properly fills me with rage. That such a person can still be an MP fills me with despair.

Thank you everyone, for your responses; means a lot.
 
Spot on Bob.

My organisation have used the same resource for many years on PIP.

Thinks are getting worse, but what do you expected from the Tories, a party that has never had a shred of social consciousness
 
Yes, superb post from Bob McC. It accurately describes the reality as I have experienced it (via my disabled partner). It's a reality too many people are ignorant of (wilfully so, in some cases).

So, come on folks, sign and share the petition! Let's see if we can get it up to 6 million signatures by the end of the day!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.


advertisement


Back
Top