Unexpected ESA Reassessment Questionnaire.

Dear Moderators,
Thanks to this website I was successfully transferred from Income Support into the Support Group of Income Related ESA 3 years ago.
Since then I have had 3 further reassessments and remained in the Support Group of (IR) ESA throughout.
My next reassessment is due in April 2014. However, in February 2014 upon reading about the 2 year deferral of repeat ESA reassessments here on B & W website I was not expecting another ESA Questionnaire for quite some time yet.
Today however, I received another ESA50 Questionnaire to complete.
I have not reported any change in circumstances. I am aware I must fill in this ESA questionnaire.
Please can I ask why you think this has happened in light of the deferral notice?
Thank you.

sydneyboy wrote: Dear Moderators,
Thanks to this website I was successfully transferred from Income Support into the Support Group of Income Related ESA 3 years ago.
Since then I have had 3 further reassessments and remained in the Support Group of (IR) ESA throughout.
My next reassessment is due in April 2014. However, in February 2014 upon reading about the 2 year deferral of repeat ESA reassessments here on B & W website I was not expecting another ESA Questionnaire for quite some time yet.
Today however, I received another ESA50 Questionnaire to complete.
I have not reported any change in circumstances. I am aware I must fill in this ESA questionnaire.
Please can I ask why you think this has happened in light of the deferral notice?
Thank you.

Hi sb,

Although it has been stated that re-assessment will be deferred for existing ESA recipients, this is not the case for ESA recipients who have already been referred to ATOS prior to January 2014.

Therefore, it may well be that you were in fact referred to ATOS by The DWP prior to the date that deferments began.

bro58

Hi sb,

See :

www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/news/2653-atos...ts-for-esa-claimants

&

"The DWP stopped referring claimants to Atos for repeat medicals with effect from 20 January 2014."

From :

www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/news/2648-repe...ferred-for-two-years

In light of the huge back log that ATOS have, you could have been referred to them before 20/01/14.

bro58

With this in mind, that you may have been referred prior to the jan 20th cut off date, and if you were also expecting to reassessed around this current time, would ATOS have a "live referral" if you were to ring and enquire whether this was the case?

Also, if you were referred earlier than Jan 20th, and you were due to be reassessed around the current time frame, that would put the referrals more than three months early. One wonders if DWP didn't put a load through early, having prior knowledge that the reassessments would stop.

Hi st,

We did seem to have a spate of members receiving ESA50's some 4-5 months before their expected reassessment dates last year.

bro58

Dear Bro58,
Thank you for your time and information.
As my official reassessment date is 19th April 2014, clearly I must have been referred before the elusive 20th January 2014 cut off date.
Unknowingly I thought the deferment scan was to run from 20th January 2014 onwards and didn't consider that I may have been deferred 3 months ahead of time.