When I attend PIP or ESA work capability assessments my husband always comes with me. I had assumed I had a right to have him present during a phone or video assessment but your advice says that I must ask permission first. I have never had to do that before. Do I contact the DWP before the assessment? What if they say 'no?' In the past I have never recorded or filmed an assessment. I know I would have to ask to do that first and I've never seen the necessity to do so as long as someone could be with me. I once attended an assessment without him and the assessor wrote things I was supposed to have said which I had not said.
You don't have to ask if you can have someone with you but we are recommending that you inform the assessor that you do, if they object then are entries from the DWP's guidance about allowing the claimant to have someone with them that you refer them to.
So, you don't need to contact anybody in advance of the call.
Gordon
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
