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dla and epilepsy appeal

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9 years 1 month ago #133927 by karren
dla and epilepsy appeal was created by karren
hi my daughter has epilepsy and was getting dla middle care and low mobility .i filled in the new pip form .went for the assessment in january .what a joke she didnt know anything about epilepsy and all the questions she asked she took at face value on that day .can you wash can you cook can you use a bank card can you dress yourself which every answer was yes ,but not after a seize which would have been no to every answer my daughter has nocturnal epilepsy and is unconsious for at least 15 mins at a time and takes several days to recover she takes 3 different brands of medication also but she didnt write any of this down she wouldnt let me speak she kept asking my daughter .she is not aware so couldnt answer .anyway got a reply 8 points for care and no mobilty even though she is not allowed to drive though seizures was not happy so wrote a long letter to stress the points she should have recieved in great detail .fely as though we told them a pack of lies when everything we said was true why would you lie about a disabilty . well yesterday letter come back . they have looked at all the claim the 4 points we had for prepare a meal we now have 2 they said you can use a microwave in stead of a cooker how dear they say that what if i dont have a microwave .also you can get a shower so less danger of drowning in the bath i dont have a shower also you can still have a fit in the shower then drown in the build up of water if the shower is over the bath .so now she has no points at all .im fuming so angry i stressed the sections we waanted looking at again now she has been left with nothing i went into gret detail each time i wrote she is stuck in a catch 22 as she seems healthy but not post epilectic when she is a total different person i also stressed the 50/50 rule but this has been overlooked .i am going to appeal what do you think of my situation also have you got any information onappeals on epilepsy and points to mention thank you

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9 years 1 month ago #133943 by Gordon
Replied by Gordon on topic dla and epilepsy appeal
karren

Welcome to the forum, you might want to have a look at the following FAQ which explain where everything is

Welcome to Benefits and Work

I am afraid the whilst the language used for PIP suggests that the criteria are similar to those for DLA, the reality is that in most cases they are very different and the approach to assessing claimants in fundamentally different.

From your post you appear to have already had a Mandatory Reconsideration, if this is the case then you should now have two copies if the Mandatory Reconsideration Notice, you will need one of these to submit an appeal to the Tribunal Service. Have a look at our PIP MR and Appeal guide for information on the process and links to the forms you will need to complete.

www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/help-for-claimants/pip

Your primary task is to show that you meet the criteria, there are many reasons you may have failed, you need to address each of these but don't get bogged down in criticising the assessment report unless you can clearly show that it is incorrect, it is a lot easier to argue the facts of the situation rather than their opinions.

PIP allows the assumption of aids and appliances (microwave and shower), where their usage can be shown to be reasonable, so you will need to explain in detail why these are not for your daughter. Have a look at our PIP Claim guide for details of the full PIP criteria and how to approach answering them. Also on above link.

An appeal panel will look at everything from scratch so there is every reason to believe that you can get this Decision overturned. You might want to have a look at the following fact sheets that cover appeals in general.

Disability Rights UK Factsheet - Appeals and reconsiderations

Preparing for a Tribunal

Good practice for those appealing

We don't have any information that is specific to Epilepsy, but the Epilepsy Society does, see

www.epilepsysociety.org.uk/benefits#.VUDbomdFDcw

If you have more questions them please reply to this post and we will do our best to help.

Gordon

Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems

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9 years 3 weeks ago #134241 by karren
Replied by karren on topic dla and epilepsy appeal
thank you gordon i now have the h p report and she contradicts lots of questions saying nshe needs help post epiletic but not given any points im more angry at the points been takin away in reconsideration they say they acknowledge her epilepsy but her help is not ned for all of the time i feel this is the point were i have to state her case as epilepsy is so unpredticable how can you say when you are gong to have a seizure i have read and takin lots of notes from your information pages we should have been assessed for 50% of the time over a 12 month period as you stated .but she took my daughter on that day which is unfair and unjust the effects of epilepsy and her medication is a disability in its own right she has nocturnal seizures followed by clusters over the next few days told them all this but because its not everyday there not interested ive arqued this fact im so angry they accept that during or after a seizureshe would be unable to perform any of the task but this is not the majority of the time i cannot understand this reasoning seizures come when they want there is no time scale .can you offer any advice on how to claify this to them thank you very much

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9 years 3 weeks ago #134256 by Gordon
Replied by Gordon on topic dla and epilepsy appeal
Karren

Unfortunately, where DLA took a generalised view of the support that a claimant needs, PIP is very specific, so you must link her fits to the PIP Descriptors for an award to be made.

The first thing to look at is how often her Fits occur and therefore how likely she is to have one, obviously the more likely she is to have a Fit then more likely that this will occur while she is performing the tasks that PIP tests, or having had a fit, that she is unable to then perform those tasks.

Also, can you identify the triggers for a Fit, you say that they are mostly overnight followed by clusters during the day, are there specific activities or events during the day that trigger the day time fits?

You probably have already, but identify the risk that might result from her having a Fit while carrying out the PIP activities, can you refer back to occasions where this has happened?

If she cannot perform the tasks after a fit has occurred why not and for how long?

This probably sounds as if you are repeating what you have already submitted and this may be the case, but you need to remember that the Decision Maker is not medically trained and may have no first or even second hand experience of someone having a Fit and is therefore unable to extrapolate the issues that you have presented

Gordon

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9 years 3 weeks ago #134265 by karren
Replied by karren on topic dla and epilepsy appeal
thank you for the information i am reapeating my self over and over i will add all this information again i have explained all these points in great deail and how her fits stop her from doing these activities .i think the catch is with epilepsy they want to know how many fits she has in maybe a week and then calculate how many over a year to qualify for the 50% rule but everyday is different how can i calculate this .its as if they want me to lie and say she ha fits everyday this month she has had 2 nocturnal seizures and 2 clusters the following day thats on top of all the absences she has daily the majority of the time is the clause they are using in my opipon to not allow pip .seems funny how it was awareded one min then taking away with all the same information any more advice would be greatful thank you x

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9 years 3 weeks ago #134274 by Gordon
Replied by Gordon on topic dla and epilepsy appeal
Karren

The simplest way to show the likelihood of an attack is to count how often they have occurred historically, if your daughters condition is stable then it would be reasonable to project a similar frequency into the future.

You mention that she also suffers absences, how often do these occur and can you link them to any specific circumstances that would be relevant to the PIP Descriptors.

When talking about the risk associated with a seizure or absence it would help if you can refer back to occasions when she has suffered harm, for example, has she burned herself cooking or collapsed when showering?

Gordon

Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems

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