Hi all, hope you’re all as well as can be expected
I was contacted by ATOS in January about an assessment, given that my review date is in December this year, I thought it was strange. I called the DWP and apparently it can be this early so I arranged the assessment for 2 days later as Rob wasn’t working and knowing how bad it was first time round, we thought just do it as we’d have time on our side if it went wrong.
About a month later I had a letter from DWP apologising for the delay…
I called them last week to try and get an update as I was starting to worry. The lady I spoke with was clearly as confused as me, so after running thru the chain of events twice and even doing a 2nd security check, she confirmed that records showed my current PIP would be paid until a date in 2019!
She apologised and said she’d look into getting a letter to me (which still hasn’t actually happened) but it seems that I may just have been so early on it, that they don’t have a letter for it yet.
I’m very relieved but expect I’ll still need to call again regarding the letter.
It’s such a weight off every time we get one of these things ticked off the long list and I wanted to share to say we can do this stuff when we need to and the DWP are not the devil, tho some of ATOS clearly are! Chap I saw in January was really nice actually and caught me when he asked me to do a squat, which I absent-mindedly thought I could still do! He said that he’d looked through all the previous report and I explained it was partly my fault for earnestly explaining how I’d found ways to cope etc. Being self-employed etc. I didn’t feel I’d had much other choice but to do that.
Good luck to anyone that has to face this in the coming year.
Hope it’s as quick and painless as possible, when it happens Pat. As I still don’t have it in writing I know I won’t feel 100% confident til a letter arrives but seems that at least they’re not doing a complete whitewash effort on me. Yes, the stress it puts everyone thru is rotten.
Whilst cognition is worsening for me, I still feel I’m lucky that I use to deal with the complex procedures laid down by the Financial conduct authority and FSA before that and how different companies applied those rules. And my husband doing the same and without my wobbles, was patient enough to read all the DWP info on PIP from their website. How people deal with rejection, who’ve had no experience of matters like this is a massive mountain to climb! I was able to compare my circumstances with what ATOS said quite quickly once I’d got a copy of the ATOS report. Then I addressed each and every area of the assessment which did take me several days, including back up to inaccuracies with medical evidence - so it wasn’t surprising that they got 9 pages from me when I’d asked for the mandatory reconsideration. It’s so wrong that people need a good grounding on the procedural stuff, or assistance to apply for this. Just wrong!
Like you Sonia I am still able to fill out these forms properly, even though I sometimes spiral down into tears from the effort it takes. But I worked in admin so I know how to fill in a form, follow guides online (and am computer savvy enough to find those guides) use language which will be understood and explain how MS affects me.
What makes me so angry and depressed is that there are so many people out there who do not have these skills or who don’t have English as their first language, or who are so intimidated by these forms that they can’t even begin to fill them in.
The government seems to be able to put unlimited amounts of money into trying to catch us out or find so-called fraudulent claims, and yet they don’t put one penny towards finding the people who are entitled to benefits but have either not applied or have been refused and have not appealed the decision.
There are no doubt many people out there with MS and other debilitating conditions, who struggle every day as we do, who are living on job seekers allowance (and of course if they miss an appointment they get sanctioned and lose their benefit for a week or more). It makes my blood boil.
So although I dread the forms coming at least I know that I WILL be able to fill them in properly and have a good chance of getting the benefits I’m entitled to.
I have just received a decision concerning the Personal Independence Payment after filling in the 40 page tome a couple of months ago. Fortunately it is all in my favour and does not need reviewing with a consultation sparing me that stress.
The letter I have received explaining the ‘scoring’ system of the descriptors was both comprehensive and thorough, giving reasons why some of my answers gave me ‘nil points’
I actually feel as though I was dealt with by a human being
Yes, I became quite entrenched in the descriptors when asking for the reconsideration. Consistency is my weakness, I think I can do something because I did it yesterday… but today, balance wasn’t where I thought I left it!
Hi, I have just filled the forms again since being actually diagnosed with ppms and like Stefos I sailed through with no assessment just a phone call from the DWP telling me I now get the highest on both living and mobility. Then a letter explaining it all. The lady that rang me was actually really nice.
I don’t know why everyone who is generally ill can’t be treated like this.
As l was 65 before 8thApril 2013 - l stay on DLA - and l have it indefinitely. Been on DLA for 30 odd years now. Did get severe disablement - but that was stopped when l claimed my state-pension.
And after 2 calls to DWP, a letter finally arrived this morning.
Unchanged til Feb 2019 so I can finally breathe a sigh of relief However, no point rushing to do it as it was 3 years from their re-review, not 3 years from expiry of the original award.
Great news. It seems we’re seeing more successes with PPMS mire more human beings are dealing with the quagmire they received when they stepped in after the mess made by other assessors.
Really pleased for you Stefos. Well done human being.