Ambiguous letter

Hi all

I received the dreaded ESA50 in January and sent it back well before the deadline. I am at the end of a 2 year stint in the support group.
I received a letter yesterday saying

'We have looked at your claim again following a recent change.
From April 11 2016 the rates of some Social Sec benefits may change.
From 27/2/2016 your ESA will be £186.90 a week.
This is because of:
a decision on your capability for work. You have been placed in the support group'

Is this an actual ' you passed the test but telephone to find out how long for' letter or is this just a reference to amounts changing annually (they normally change in April right??)?

Worryingly at the very end of the letter, after a summation of the the components of my ESA award, it states

' The amounts on this page apply from 27/02/2016 to 02/12/2016'

which make me think the award is short or that the letter does indeed merely refer to amounts changing rather than confirming a new award.


Any informed opinions would be greatly received cos I am at a bit of a loss.

Tx

alex wrote: Hi all

I received the dreaded ESA50 in January and sent it back well before the deadline. I am at the end of a 2 year stint in the support group.
I received a letter yesterday saying

'We have looked at your claim again following a recent change.
From April 11 2016 the rates of some Social Sec benefits may change.
From 27/2/2016 your ESA will be £186.90 a week.
This is because of:
a decision on your capability for work. You have been placed in the support group'

Is this an actual ' you passed the test but telephone to find out how long for' letter or is this just a reference to amounts changing annually (they normally change in April right??)?

Worryingly at the very end of the letter, after a summation of the the components of my ESA award, it states

' The amounts on this page apply from 27/02/2016 to 02/12/2016'

which make me think the award is short or that the letter does indeed merely refer to amounts changing rather than confirming a new award.


Any informed opinions would be greatly received cos I am at a bit of a loss.

Tx

Hi a,

This letter reads very much like an SG Decision Notice letter !!!!!

However, the way things are, it could just be the annual "uprating" entitlement letter that is sent to ESA recipients every year !!!

They are being sent out presently !!

"' The amounts on this page apply from 27/02/2016 to 02/12/2016"

I wouldn't worry about this, as even if you have been placed into The SG once more as a result of your re-assessment, Decision Notices do not include the "length" of the award and the 02/12/16 date is tied into payment of The Xmas Bonus which is payable from the first pay week of December each year.

i.e. Your ESA payment would not cease on 02/12/16, but the amount that you would be entitled to in that pay week would be different as it would include The Xmas Bonus.

The only way to be sure is to ring ESA : THE ESA PHONE NUMBER DWP : 0345 608 8545 (Open 8AM-6PM. Mon-Fri.) where they should be able to confirm on-screen whether you have been placed into The SG once more.

If they confirm that you have, you could also ask them to tell you of the recommended date for your next reassessment.

Please return here to let us know on way or the other !!!!

bro58

I called today and it actually was an 'award' letter, with a next assessment date of February 2018.

Obviously this is great news.

With tx
Alex

alex wrote: I called today and it actually was an 'award' letter, with a next assessment date of February 2018.

Obviously this is great news.

With tx
Alex

Hi a,

Excellent !!!!

At least you should have another couple of years peace from ESA now !

You may find : This Post informative !

bro58

That's great news Alex!