Hi

Following on from my trials and tribulations with the DWP I have been placed in the support group. This is down to the excellent advice contained on this site.

My hubby however even after his mandatory reconsideration has been kept in the WRAG group. I really can't understand this as he is severely affected by his sensory/motor atonal peripheral neuropathy. They seem to be unable to grasp what this means. The doctor at Atos said he should be better in 6 months or so. I simply cannot get it through to them that the disease is progressive and in fact is progressing. He can do less now than a year ago. He's also suffering severe anxiety and is on meds for his depression. Each time I read the report I wonder who they are talking about

He has said that he wants to appeal however he doesn't want to go to any of the advice agencies. When he is faced with strangers who he has to open up to he gets very tearful and upset so it will be me that helps him with this. I'm going to ask out GP who is fantastic if she can write a report.

How long to I have to lodge his appeal, he only has 2 -3 months of his contribution esa left and won't qualify for income related as I have a small pension.
Is there any advice you can give me on how to proceed with this. He has been discharged by his neurologist as there is nothing that can be done for his illness.

I just need some help on how to do this for him.

Many thanks

Ariadne wrote: Hi

Following on from my trials and tribulations with the DWP I have been placed in the support group. This is down to the excellent advice contained on this site.

My hubby however even after his mandatory reconsideration has been kept in the WRAG group. I really can't understand this as he is severely affected by his sensory/motor atonal peripheral neuropathy. They seem to be unable to grasp what this means. The doctor at Atos said he should be better in 6 months or so. I simply cannot get it through to them that the disease is progressive and in fact is progressing. He can do less now than a year ago. He's also suffering severe anxiety and is on meds for his depression. Each time I read the report I wonder who they are talking about

He has said that he wants to appeal however he doesn't want to go to any of the advice agencies. When he is faced with strangers who he has to open up to he gets very tearful and upset so it will be me that helps him with this. I'm going to ask out GP who is fantastic if she can write a report.

How long to I have to lodge his appeal, he only has 2 -3 months of his contribution esa left and won't qualify for income related as I have a small pension.
Is there any advice you can give me on how to proceed with this. He has been discharged by his neurologist as there is nothing that can be done for his illness.

I just need some help on how to do this for him.

Many thanks

Hi A,

I am sorry to hear of your husband's unsuccessful MR !!

You have one month from the date of The MR Notice that you should have received to lodge an appeal directly to The Tribunals Service. (TS)

This should be done using copy of The MR Notice, and Form SSCS 1.

You can read more regarding this from Page 12 of our :

"Employment and Support Allowance mandatory reconsiderations and appeals
40 page guide to mandatory reconsiderations and appeals for ESA, for decisions made on or after 28 October 2013. Updated February 2015."

Directly under : "ESA appeals" on : This Page.

You should ensure that your appeal is posted in good time so that it received by The TS no later that the the date of the one month deadline.

If you don't have all your evidence at the time of posting, you can comment that you will forward further evidence on to The TS as soon as you have it.

You can submit further evidence safely to The TS up until around 14 days before the hearing date.

See also : Disability Rights UK Factsheet - Appeals and Mandatory Reconsiderations.

&

MOJ Video of ESA Appeals Process and Tribunal

bro58

Thank you yet again Bro for the invaluable advice. After a lot of discussion and watching the video hubby has decided he will appeal. He had been dreadfully upset and tearful at his medical for both PIP and ESA but feels now after watching it that it isn't as ghastly as his ESA medical which to my mind was a travesty.

I will write to our GP and call his neurologist's secretary and see if he will give us a medical report.

I'll keep you updated.

update.

After all of the hooha regarding hubby's appeal, making sure we had the documents, medical reports etc I filled in the form and got everything sent off recorded delivery. We then got a letter from the tribunal service to say that they had received it and it was being processed.

I checked with hubby again and again if he wanted to do this and anxiety wise would he cope. The watched the excellent video you linked and that really worked wonders.

Fast forward to yesterday, we got a call from DWP, the voice was awfully familiar and I'm pretty sure it was the same woman who was nasty to me when they wrongly accused me of fraud. Anyway, she was really horrible to hubby and kept saying that it wasn't his signature on the form and she was rejecting it. He gave the phone to me and I spoke to her. I tried to explain that I'm his representative and that I filled in the phone. I also said that he signed it and he's unable to hold a pen for long periods due to his disability. She turned round and said that this isn't the signature of someone who has any problems !!!

Hubby was looking in the file for copies of the form. Sod's law he didn't copy the signature page. I asked what would happen after she said she was rejecting it and sending it back to the tribunal service since the signature didn't match the signature on the day of his medical. I asked would this affect his appeal and was told of course, this would take it out with the time limit.

I called the tribunal service and explained and asked them if they could check was the sig his initial or mine. She was lovely and called back today to say it was fine and that I should call DWP back and tell them that. Also to give them her name and direct line no. I did this and someone else answered, I explained again and she said that she would get her to call me back tomorrow or else she would call. I asked if she would do it rather that the first one and gave her the tribunal managers no.

Such a difference in attitude. I wonder do some of the DWP enjoy upsetting and stressing people. I do have one question. What happens if the DWP refuse to accept that this is hubby's signature?

Ariadne

Some Decision Makers seem to take it as a personal insult when a claimant appeals a Decision that they have made!!!

As far as I am aware the Decision to allow the appeal lies wholly with the Tribunal Service.

As to your being out of time, you can appeal at any time up to 13 months after the Decision is made, it is again down to the Tribunal Service to allow the appeal or not, however, a request for appeal has been made, so even if the Tribunal Service required the issue with the signature to be resolved, providing this was done within a reasonable period then the request would still apply from the date that it was originally received.

Gordon