PIP supporting evidence

Hello olly349,

I don't wish to contradict anything the moderators have told you because their advice is always sound. I just want to emphasise what David has said about letting your appointee speak for you, as I have made mistakes over this in the past. I am an appointee for my son, but in my experience, assessors will always insist that they must speak only to the claimant and I did not realise we could refuse. I hope to be wiser in future.

If it is a telephone assessment, I'd advise confirming your details and then leaving the room to let your appointee get on with it, although I'm not sure you need to be present at all as long as your appointee is there to take the call. Hopefully, you won't be called to a face-to-face assessment, as that might be more difficult. Just be aware that an assessor will try every trick in the book to make you participate and then they will mislead and confuse you into agreeing that you can do all manner of things which you know, in your heart of hearts, that you cannot. Forgive me for saying this, as you are obviously very intelligent, but this is especially true for claimants with mental health problems, neurodiversity, or learning difficulties. They will use these problems against you, which is why you need an appointee.

You asked if having an appointee is a wise decision for someone in your situation and it definitely is, but it is a decision that the DWP have already made on your behalf, so you don't have to justify it any further. Unfortunately, assessors are not part of the DWP and they don't always understand the rules relating to claimants with an appointee - or maybe they just pretend they don't.

A word about driving - I will try to keep it brief. Don't mention it at all if you can help it, but they will probably ask, as PIP assessors are obsessed with driving as an indication of ability. For my son's first assessment, which was face-to-face, he showed the assessor his provisional driving licence as identification, but told her he doesn't drive, although he had had one or two lessons several years earlier. He was awarded no points, but when I requested a copy of the assessor's report, almost every response she had recorded began "Is learning to drive, which shows capacity for - etc., etc." even though none of the descriptors mention an ability to drive. Perhaps if you - or your appointee - are asked, you could say something like, "I keep my driving licence because it is useful as ID, but my medical conditions mean I am no longer able to drive." Hopefully, they could not then infer anything else.

Just one more thing - everyone worries that they might have said something wrong during their assessment, but try not to pre-empt it or beat yourself up about it afterwards. It is the system that is flawed, not you. Unfortunately, it often seems as if the assessor has made up their mind beforehand, so it doesn't matter what you say. Sometimes they write down everything you say verbatim, then proceed to contradict it. Unfortunately, the DWP usually rely heavily on the assessor's report, even when they already have a lot of evidence and have made decisions in the claimant's favour in the past.

I hope you may find some of this helpful and that nothing I have written has alarmed you unduly - you seem very well prepared, but anxious, as we all are when facing stressful situations. I know it's easier said than done, but try not to over-think it - you have done all you can.

I hope it goes well for you.

Best wishes,

Wendy