too late

Panther, if you continue to qualify for ESA in theory, even if only getting NI credits rather than any money, you can access the Suppport Group at a later stage if your condition deteriorates. This is not the case if your claim lapses at any stage.

panther50 wrote:

I am currently trying to decide whether and how to appeal for the support group, I have been transferred to contributions based ESA and put in WRAG. I have a lifelong chronic illness and one of the things I was worried about was dropping out of the system altogether because if I were to suffer a flare up of my condition I could qualify for the Support group at any time in the future. I thought if you passed the ESA assessment and if you continued to pass those assessments even though you get no money after 365 days you could still get NI credits paid. Have I got this wrong?

No, you are entirely correct in that if you continue to pass the work capability assessment despite having exhausted the 365 days of ESA entitlement in the WRAG, you will still continue to receive NI credits as long as you continue to meet the conditions of entitlement.