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PIP tribunal hearing
- SJP
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10 hours 35 minutes ago #310963 by SJP
PIP tribunal hearing was created by SJP
I applied for PIP in 2024 and was declined with zero in every category. I completed an MR and nothing changed. I then requested an appeal and was given a hearing date in July 2025.
Between my original application and the tribunal I received a formal diagnosis of ADHD. I realise a lot of people do not take this condition seriously but if you haven't lived with it it is very difficult to fully understand how debilitating it is - albeit more mentally than physically but nonetheless it makes life very difficult.
I requested an adjournment as I was hoping for advice from the CAB and they were not available to help for several weeks which would have taken me beyond the tribunal date. The request was denied so I attended the hearing. I did however send confirmation of my diagnosis and (so I thought) a copy of the assessment report. It turns out that the assessment report hadn't been received by the tribunal so on that basis they adjourned the hearing.
I had been told by CAB that no new diagnosis could be taken into account at a hearing so I was expecting to have my claim denied. The tribunal believed that although the diagnosis is new the condition will have been present at the time of my application and as they hadn't seen the full assessment report they felt it unfair to go ahead.
The person who has been supporting me via the CAB put together a statement to send to the tribunal and asked me to read over the draft and confirm I was happy with the content. For the most part I was but there were a few amendments that needed to be made. In a typical ADHD hyperfocus mode I went back over all my paperwork and created my own statement that highlighted my issues, pointed out errors in the medical assessment and explained the constraints I feel due to the condition. Nothing has changed since my original application but a lot of my limitations can be put down to ADHD as well as anxiety and depression.
So finally I will get to my point... I emailed a copy of my own statement to the CAB last night and the person helping me called today and said I can submit what I have written (which is quite in depth and I feel reflect my daily struggles) or I can use what they have written. I can't send both and their support will be withdrawn if I decide to submit my own statement.
My question is what do others who have been to a tribunal think about using a CAB statement as supporting evidence? Will that carry more weight than my own statement? The basic information is the same but I go into more detail and have added a couple of extra bits. I felt that the CAB support person was not really believing what I said and that they had other 'more deserving' people they could be assisting.
Apologies for the long post but I wanted to make sure I add everything and hopefully make it make sense! My tribunal date is now in early December so I need to get my thoughts together and submit my information ASAP.
Between my original application and the tribunal I received a formal diagnosis of ADHD. I realise a lot of people do not take this condition seriously but if you haven't lived with it it is very difficult to fully understand how debilitating it is - albeit more mentally than physically but nonetheless it makes life very difficult.
I requested an adjournment as I was hoping for advice from the CAB and they were not available to help for several weeks which would have taken me beyond the tribunal date. The request was denied so I attended the hearing. I did however send confirmation of my diagnosis and (so I thought) a copy of the assessment report. It turns out that the assessment report hadn't been received by the tribunal so on that basis they adjourned the hearing.
I had been told by CAB that no new diagnosis could be taken into account at a hearing so I was expecting to have my claim denied. The tribunal believed that although the diagnosis is new the condition will have been present at the time of my application and as they hadn't seen the full assessment report they felt it unfair to go ahead.
The person who has been supporting me via the CAB put together a statement to send to the tribunal and asked me to read over the draft and confirm I was happy with the content. For the most part I was but there were a few amendments that needed to be made. In a typical ADHD hyperfocus mode I went back over all my paperwork and created my own statement that highlighted my issues, pointed out errors in the medical assessment and explained the constraints I feel due to the condition. Nothing has changed since my original application but a lot of my limitations can be put down to ADHD as well as anxiety and depression.
So finally I will get to my point... I emailed a copy of my own statement to the CAB last night and the person helping me called today and said I can submit what I have written (which is quite in depth and I feel reflect my daily struggles) or I can use what they have written. I can't send both and their support will be withdrawn if I decide to submit my own statement.
My question is what do others who have been to a tribunal think about using a CAB statement as supporting evidence? Will that carry more weight than my own statement? The basic information is the same but I go into more detail and have added a couple of extra bits. I felt that the CAB support person was not really believing what I said and that they had other 'more deserving' people they could be assisting.
Apologies for the long post but I wanted to make sure I add everything and hopefully make it make sense! My tribunal date is now in early December so I need to get my thoughts together and submit my information ASAP.
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- BIS
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8 hours 36 minutes ago #310968 by BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Replied by BIS on topic PIP tribunal hearing
Hi SJP
I'm sorry that you find yourself in this position. We can't tell you what to do here - this is something that you will have to decide for yourself.
The CAB offers great support to many people, which has been invaluable - but we do hear from a small number who have expressed dissatisfaction with statements written by the CAB on their behalf. It is usually because the claimant feels that it does not give a full enough picture of their difficulties. You have said that your statement is similar to the one by the CAB but that it gives more details. If you think those details are something the panel needs to hear - then you have your answer. The Tribunal will not give greater weight to a report written by the CAB than to one written by the claimant. The fact is that you are an expert about your own conditions and difficulties, and the CAB cannot match that knowledge. CAB reports tend to follow a particular style, which works for some people and not others. Many people use the CAB because they don't feel they have the skills to be able to argue their own case. Others don't use the CAB because they want control over what is presented to the panel..
You have to do what is best for you.
BIS
I'm sorry that you find yourself in this position. We can't tell you what to do here - this is something that you will have to decide for yourself.
The CAB offers great support to many people, which has been invaluable - but we do hear from a small number who have expressed dissatisfaction with statements written by the CAB on their behalf. It is usually because the claimant feels that it does not give a full enough picture of their difficulties. You have said that your statement is similar to the one by the CAB but that it gives more details. If you think those details are something the panel needs to hear - then you have your answer. The Tribunal will not give greater weight to a report written by the CAB than to one written by the claimant. The fact is that you are an expert about your own conditions and difficulties, and the CAB cannot match that knowledge. CAB reports tend to follow a particular style, which works for some people and not others. Many people use the CAB because they don't feel they have the skills to be able to argue their own case. Others don't use the CAB because they want control over what is presented to the panel..
You have to do what is best for you.
BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
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- SJP
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4 hours 4 minutes ago #310984 by SJP
Replied by SJP on topic PIP tribunal hearing
Thank you for your reply. My gut instinct tells me to go with my statement as it is in more detail albeit in a similar format to the CAB one.
I don't want to criticise their help as they have given me some useful information and insight. But if their statement carries no more weight than my own I will use what I have written. As you said I know my difficulties better than anyone.
I don't want to criticise their help as they have given me some useful information and insight. But if their statement carries no more weight than my own I will use what I have written. As you said I know my difficulties better than anyone.
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- LL26
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52 minutes ago #310985 by LL26
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Replied by LL26 on topic PIP tribunal hearing
Hi SJP,
What BIS days is totally correct.
I would like to add how I write legal arguments (submission) for a tribunal. I fix a meeting with the client and then have a general chat about their disability and then have a more focussed discussion about each descriptor. I write a careful note about what is said. I then include this as a direct quote. So eg about walking ability I would write as follows
"When asked about how far Miss X could walk she said ' My feet burn, every step I take is worse than the next, it burns, it hurts, it really hurts I get this throbbing, kind of, pulsing pain....' "
So...using the same example, if I was to ask you how you walk, and the pain, what would you say to me, write how you would answer the question. Sell it to me. Do this in respect of all the descriptors. These are your words and nothing is more powerful. Tell and sell your story in your own words.
Good luck.
LL26
What BIS days is totally correct.
I would like to add how I write legal arguments (submission) for a tribunal. I fix a meeting with the client and then have a general chat about their disability and then have a more focussed discussion about each descriptor. I write a careful note about what is said. I then include this as a direct quote. So eg about walking ability I would write as follows
"When asked about how far Miss X could walk she said ' My feet burn, every step I take is worse than the next, it burns, it hurts, it really hurts I get this throbbing, kind of, pulsing pain....' "
So...using the same example, if I was to ask you how you walk, and the pain, what would you say to me, write how you would answer the question. Sell it to me. Do this in respect of all the descriptors. These are your words and nothing is more powerful. Tell and sell your story in your own words.
Good luck.
LL26
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
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