Incapacity benefit Annual Interview

Totally confused....April received letter for annual review of my Incapacity Benefit. During that time completed ESA form. Received date for Interview and states that I have been put in Work - Related Group. Contacted DWP and was informed this my Annual Review and nothing to do with my ATOS Claim.
First of all, don,t trust DWP one bit as they have Government guidelines & performance % to account for
I have received nothing about my claim through ATOS.

If I go to the interview and find out this is the group I have been put in ...will this stop any action to question the decision by ATOS.

Has I have a Brain Injury can I refuse to go to a Practice Nurse and request a Clinical Phycologist as they would be more able to judge my capacity for work than a practice Nurse

easytogo wrote: Totally confused....April received letter for annual review of my Incapacity Benefit. During that time completed ESA form. Received date for Interview and states that I have been put in Work - Related Group. Contacted DWP and was informed this my Annual Review and nothing to do with my ATOS Claim.
First of all, don,t trust DWP one bit as they have Government guidelines & performance % to account for
I have received nothing about my claim through ATOS.

If I go to the interview and find out this is the group I have been put in ...will this stop any action to question the decision by ATOS.

Has I have a Brain Injury can I refuse to go to a Practice Nurse and request a Clinical Phycologist as they would be more able to judge my capacity for work than a practice Nurse

Hi etg,

Welcome to Benefits and Work

All IB, IS and SDA recipients have been getting transferred over to ESA since March 2011.

If you have filled an ESA50 in, that is what has happened to you.

It sounds very much like you have been assessed by ATOS on the paper evidence alone, and have been placed into The WRAG of ESA.

ATOS are contracted by The DWP to carry out the medical assessment side of the process, they then make recommendations, return your file to The DWP who then make the final decision.

This is fairly common.

As it appears that you have been placed into The WRAG, you then have to comply with WRA, as in :

Work Focused Interviews

The Work Programme

WFI's can be deferred, carried out over the phone or even in one's home.

If you cannot attend the WFI due to your limitations, you should contact the JCP Adviser, who then has the discretion to take one of the three options above.

You cannot however insist on any of these options.

So it sounds like the "interview that you speak of is a WFI rather than an ATOS face to face assessment, as it seems from what you have written that a decision to place you into the WRAG has already been made.

You need to clarify this situation ASAP, as if it is a face to face assessment with ATOS, and not a WFI, and you fail to attend, your benefit may cease.

You can contact ATOS on their website (on the right " WCA Customer Service: Call: 0800 2888 777)

www.atoshealthcare.com/claimants

or 0113 230 9175 or E-Mail : This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Please return to this topic once you are clear on what the situation is.

bro58

Hi etg,

If you have been placed into The WRAG, but feel that you qualify for The Support Group (SG) then you can appeal the decision using a GL24 form which can be downloaded from the link on this page (you only need to print off from around page 20, onwards) :

How to submit an appeal

You should keep a copy of the GL24 and any other documents that you send. :

Sending Documents to the DWP or ATOS

See also:

How long do I have to appeal?

Is there any risk to challenging a decision?

Do I have to attend WFIs while I appeal?

What will I be paid while I appeal?

From our :

Appeals FAQ’s

There is also an ESA Appeals Guide on this page :

ESA Claims Guides

See also :

Qualifying for the Support Group

From our :

ESA FAQ’s

You may also wish to request a copy of The ESA85/ESA85A Medical Report, depending whether you had a face to face or not. There should also be an LT54.

This can be done over the phone, but if you have any trouble obtaining them, you can issue a SAR.

ESA medical – what forms to ask for?

ESA Forms

SAR :

www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/request-for-personal-information.rtf

From this page :

www.dwp.gov.uk/privacy-policy/data-protection/

You should address any SAR, FAO The Data Controller, at the address of the Benefits Office/Centre dealing with your ESA.

Write DPA 1998 SAR on the front, top, left corner of the envelope.

Do not miss your one month deadline to appeal if these documents have not arrived, you can always refer to them at a later date.

You may also find this document helpful :

Disability Rights UK Factsheet - Appeals and reconsiderations

And this video ;

MOJ Video of ESA Appeals Process and Tribunal

See also : 12 Month Limit for ESA(CB)

IB, IS, SDA, Migration to ESA FAQ’s

You might want to Bookmark/Favourite this page in your internet browser so that you can return to it easily to pose any further queries.

bro58