PIP medical assessment underscoring

Hi,
I had my face to face PIP medical assessment last week. I asked DWP to send a copy of the report to me, which they have done. I have not yet received the DWP's decision.

I have gone through the assessment and the assessor has, by and large, written down what I said. However, he has scored me significantly less than I was expecting. I honestly thought I would score between 10 and 14 points on Daily Living component (and I was being honest with myself), and 0 points for mobility, but he has scored me 3 points for the DLC and 0 for mobility. I haven't had the official decision yet but obviously DWP will just replicate what he has scored.

What should I do? Should I preemptively write to DWP, challenging the descriptor scores, or should I wait until they issue their decision?

Gordon,

Thank you for your reply.

If you think it is good idea for me to try to preempt the "no award" decision then I can telephone DWP and tell them that I intend to write to the DWP about the assessment. I am sure that the DM would hold off for a few weeks until they receive my letter. I can't imagine that they would not hold off as my letter would contain potentially relevant information.

I completely understand that calling out the report for trivial errors such as spelling mistakes would be fruitless. I did familiarize myself with the descriptors' scoring system before I completed the PIP2 form and this is why I was confident I would score 10 to 14 points. Reading the assessment, I think that where the assessor has failed to award an appropriate descriptor score is by not applying the Reliability criteria against the activities. They seem to have adopted the position that if I can do something, then it does not matter how long it takes me or if I can only achieve it less than 50% of the time, I can do it therefore the score is "0".

E.g. 1, for activity 1, Preparing food. Although I gave credible evidence as to why I cannot prepare meals at least 50% of the time (due to significant fatigue), the assessor has written "rides a bicycle, suggesting adequate concentration" and "attends weekly swimming and Pilates classes". "FH states he can cook and enjoys to cook and isn't lazy." "Therefore can prepare a simple meal unaided." I am unemployed and attending one Pilates class / week and going swimming once / week, both of which are less than 10 minutes' cycle from my house, are not proof that I can prepare three meals every day for at least four days / week, especially as I have provided evidence substantiating my fatigue.

E.g. 2, activity 8, Reading. The assessor seems to accept that although I am not dyslexic, I have to read letters multiple times before I can understand what is written, due to severe ADHD (I provided proof of this diagnosis from my consultant). It really does take me more than twice as long to read than a person without my condition would take. I don't think I have ever managed to read a novel, even though I have tried numerous times. My brain just cannot focus. Yet, despite recording this, the assessor concludes "he can read complex information unaided" and has scored me "0".

Should I write to the DWP and go through each activity with which I disagree with the assessor's score and explicitly spell out which score I believe I should be awarded, and why?

Bertie

Gordon,

Do you really think that the DM would not delay making their decision and may even make it more quickly? This really surprises me. That really is cynical!

As regards the meal, I was basing my eligibility for a non-zero descriptor score on point 2.2.16 of www.gov.uk/government/publications/perso...-assessment-criteria. (Sorry, I can't see how to insert a hyperlink here). The example given in the DWP's own guidance seems to pretty much be me.