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PIP appeal

19sarahjane90
19sarahjane90 Community member Posts: 8 Connected
edited November 2018 in PIP, DLA, and AA
hi i wanted so advice/help about my appral . I have fibromyalgia , depressiong and very bad anxiety. I was advised to apply for PIP last year after my diagnosis although its been going on for years. I applied december 2017 and from day 1 its been a problem, eventually i got my assessment date in the Feb/march and it all went down hill, the assessor didnt type much whilst i was there and was asking questions mainly about my dyslexia but i wasnt applyinh for that. She put things in the paperwork that didnt happen such as taking my coat off etc that’s all a long story! Finally ali got refused it so i appealed and within a week they sent a letter saying they looked at it agaib and wouldnt award me it even though they said i had like a month to send in information doctors note etc so ive appealed against that and have to go to a tribunal which was suppose to be yesterday but i got a phone call to say it was ajured as they’d wanted to get my medical records etc this has really kncoked me back it took me a long time to decide to actually go to the hearing i didnt sleep for nights on the run up worried and just generally anxious. Im worried its going to take a long time and that theyll be put off awarding me it more so due to the length of time its took.

Comments

  • o5jessica
    o5jessica Community member Posts: 42 Connected
    Hi you not alone I'm was bedbound 9.15 am when I had former soicaS worker  informed capita call centre again I'm need pm offer home visit.i to got medical gp confirm my medical disabilitiy joint too
     Yet today my own   medical evidence additional sent to . Not acted up on.
    I'm not got doiSoi worker replacement still.now I'm too left no support
  • 19sarahjane90
    19sarahjane90 Community member Posts: 8 Connected
    I done the PIP points scoring part and it says I should be eligable to enhance pip and standard mobility pip so I don’t understand why the women in the assessment scored me 0 on everything it’s like she got me confused with another person and or did the paperwork at the end of the day and maybe forgot things. I’m so confused and it’s causing me more stress and anxiety and more flare ups I rarely get a goodish day now 
  • BenefitsTrainingCo
    BenefitsTrainingCo Community member Posts: 2,621 Pioneering
    19sarahjane90,
    Hi Sarahjane, you've done all the right things so far. Unfortunately these kind of errors/mistakes are much too common. It's good that the tribunal have asked for your medical records as this will help them to make an informed decision. Make sure you've sent them any other evidence you think will help (from medical professionals or anyone else who works with you). 

    Unfortunately I think fibromyalgia is poorly understood by PIP assessors and sometimes by tribunal medical members too, so anything you can provide to help them understand what it is and how it will affect you will be helpful. Try to link it to the descriptors you think should apply. I completely understand about the stress you're under now, but for the tribunal you will need to concentrate on how you were at the date of the decision (unfortunately, if you've got worse since, they can't look at that). 

    The fact that you've waited longer for the tribunal hearing shouldn't make any difference to the result. The tribunal should make sure that they give you a just and fair hearing, allowing you to put forward your evidence. You should attend if you can, and you can bring someone with you if that would help (it doesn't have to be an actual representative, it could just be someone for moral support). The tribunal will mostly want to address questions to you. 

    The Scope resources are great. There's also info you can look at on the Advice Now site. The PIP panel will have a judge, a medical member and a disability member, who will probably all ask you questions. They are trying to reach the correct result, and I know it's really daunting and causing you a lot of anxiety but the process is relatively informal and the tribunal are there to give you a correct legal result - it should be much more exact than the assessor's report! If you haven't got the assessor's report (I can't tell from your posts) you could ask for it now, or the tribunal may have requested it already (if so, you'll get a copy too). It's worth explaining that it doesn't seem to be about you at all; you don't have to go through everything in it that is wrong as that would probably take ages! But you could point to the major factual inaccuracies which show that it seems it's not about you or the assessor is mis remembering very badly.

    When all this is over you might also want to put in a complaint against Atos/Capita (the firm that did your assessment). It's really common for them to make these errors but that doesn't make it acceptable - it's simply not. You could also get in touch with your MP to explain what happened. We need the assessments radically changed. 

    Do let us know what happens with your PIP appeal.

    Will
    The Benefits Training Co:

  • 19sarahjane90
    19sarahjane90 Community member Posts: 8 Connected
    Thank you , I got a letter on Friday asking me to sign so they can obtain my records, there’s a question on there I don’t really understand fully , it’s says something along the lines of my GP may send all my records including previous does this mean like before my official diagnosis? Because it’s been going on for a long time so I think it’s beneficial for them to see that? It’s a yes or no tick box
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,036 Disability Gamechanger
    HMCTS will most likely ask for medical records from a certain date.
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • samahira
    samahira Community member Posts: 39 Courageous
    I suffer with fibromyalgia since 2001 and was diagnosed in 2013. I was awarded dla higher for both in 2014 for two years. In 2016 I applied for pip and was awarded higher mobility and standard daily for two years but they wanted to review last January and awarded both standard. My representative advised I should do mandatory request which came no change. My representative then advised to appeal because my health has not improved so they shouldn’t have took any points off. Recently I had the hearing and all the panel agreed they wanted more medical evidence from my GP and did not ask any questions. Can anyone tell me why this has happened. my representative was surprised and said he never came across this before. I am getting very tired of the process. Will appreciate any comments.
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,036 Disability Gamechanger
    @samahira sometimes they can't make a decision based on the evidence they have so they will adjourn because more evidence is needed.
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • 19sarahjane90
    19sarahjane90 Community member Posts: 8 Connected
    Hi yes the problem is that HMRC didn’t request your medical notes like they should of , my appeal date was in December I think and on the day of the appeal I got a phone call cancelling it I asked why and they said they needed my medical records I asked why this wasn’t done in advance as when I first applied I gave permission for my medical records to be accessed , the lady on the phone said it’s because HMRC didn’t request them. But I’ve since been told this should of been done when I first appealed and the courts should of been given them well in advance. I understand your frustration I really do I’m so stressed with it all it’s made my anxiety so bad. My appeal date is now February and I really don’t want to go but I feel I need to just to get them to understand me but I have no one to go with which it’s nerve racking.
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,036 Disability Gamechanger
    They don't always request any evidence. It's the claimants responsibility to prove you qualify and not theirs.
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • 19sarahjane90
    19sarahjane90 Community member Posts: 8 Connected
    It was after they refused my claim and I appealed they asked me to sign a form to give them permission to access my medical records even though I’d already asked my GP to write to them as they asked that but they didn’t send any of the evidence from my GP or even request my records luckily I kept a copy of everything 

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