Contacting DWP FOR A FRIEND.

Hi all need some guidance.

I have a friend , she has filled in ESA50 and sent into ATOS. I had phone call from her, DWP kept ringing her but she lacked the confidence to answer the phone.

I went to her house, she rang the DWP number and informed them that I would be taking the call on her behalf, at fist she said she could not to this, softer a bit of to and frothing I went on phone. To my amazement she asked for my:

1. Date if Birth.
2. My NI number.
3. My address.

I told the person, they did not need to know this information, and why were they asking for it.

I wa told that it was standard DWP procedure, and if I did not give them this information they would not speak to me about the case.

I asked them to give this explanation in writing to my friend and we will take it further, the person refused to accede to our request, and ended the call.

I would like help with regards this situation please.

Wmwallace

Are you sure they did not mean her N.I. No., address and DOB. It is standard practise to ask these question to confirm that you know the person and that you have authority to speak on their behalf. Next time she phones it would best if she answered the security questions and then gave authority for you to speak to them. Alternatively if this is going to be a long term arrangement she could give written authority for you to act on her behalf. The DWP have the legal right to end the call if you do not answer the security question correctly.

Hi Puccalive,

No she answered all the security questions that the asked her, then passed the phone to me. They then asked me the questions I listed in my post.

Regards,

Wmwallace.

This I have not heard of and certainly is inappropriate. They clearly need to establish that you have authority to be given confidential info but you are quite right that there is no necessity for them to know your details to do this. I can usually speak to them just by giving my first name and clients info.

I am afraid the quality of DWP call center staff is very hit and miss. I try to avoid communicating with the DWP over the phone because of this but obviously it is necessary in some cases. If you were to phone back again it is unlikely you would get the same staff member and hopefully would get more sense. If not then ask to speak to a supervisor, this may require a call back. I certainly hope this is not a new policy as I would not feel comfortable giving this info when phoning for my clients.

You can of course make a complaint regarding this conversation but what that would achieve I cannot say.

I would be interested to know if other members have had similar experiences.

I see you are offline but hopefully you will see this post in the future.

that sounds horrible :-/

I hope it's not a new rule because I am incapable of speaking to them without getting distressed so someone else has to do it for me. historically they have just asked my details & if I authorise whomever to speak on my behalf.


Hope you get better treatment when you try again.