Hi today I have received the dreaded brown envelope and am absolutely shocked to have been turned down on both parts. I previously was on DLA high rate mobility and low rate care. I certainly am no better in fact I find things so much more difficult. The assessor came to see me at home and was either very good at looking liked she believed me or her assessment was not included in the decision. She saw clearly what difficulty I was having And encouraged my wife to speak because I was getting very confused. I have severe neurological problems that affect my every day living, this has been going on for several years but as yet, nothing has been actually given a name to my problems. I genuinely am unable to do many things and suffer great problems daily. For example I can't cook a meal as I am unable to grasp knifes, tin openers, peelers etc and I most certainly can't lift things in an out of the oven, I am also always at large risk of falling as I stumble all the time. When speaking to the person at PIP on the phone earlier he said that if I could open a pie put it on a plate and put it in the microwave then I could prepare a meal, surely this isn't right, what about preparing vegetables and other nutrients? He also said that if my wife gave me my medication and I can put it in my mouth then I don't need help there even though if I am left to take it of my own accord I will either forget or take it too regularly. Something that really upset me was that on the decision letter it stated that the assessor said I was dressed and wearing appropriate clothing however she was fully aware that my wife has to dress my lower half, it then stated that I was fine talking to the assessor when in fact it was necessary for my wife to answer most of the questions. We are totally so upset about this because it feels like they are saying you are fine get on with it when it couldn't be any further away from the truth. I am asking my decision to be looked at again and am hoping with the full description of the things I can't do been explained to them that I may at least get what I was entitled to before.

Hi and welcome to the forum.

My full name is showing, how can I stop it?

Welcome to Benefits and Work

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I'm afraid that your situation is not unusual. Your next step will be to request a Mandatory Reconsideration. Have a look at our PIP guide, decide which descriptors apply to you and see how you might be able to describe these to DWP.

If you have not yet requested a copy of the face2face assessment report it is usually helpful to do this. The report should help you understand how the decision maker came to his/her decision and what points you need to clarify. However, it is important that you get your MR request in on time, even if you have not had the report by then.

All this is covered in our PIP guides.

PIP help for claimants

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I was turned down as well, WITHOUT A FACE TO FACE. I sent a MR 3 page letter in response in which I pointed out the 'guessing game' the decision maker took up themselves when awarding me 7 point for daily living and pointed out in my MR that there is evidence of my been wrongly overlooked for 26 points. It was convenient for them to allow 7 points and not make the leap to 8.

They have no conscience and are breaking the law every day. Just check out the stats on successful appeals...it tells the real story of this shameless carry on.

Hello I could really do with some help please, I received my decision yesterday it was a change from DLA.to PIP . For the last 5 years I had been awarded High mobility and Low personal care. When my decision arrived yesterday it states that I had scored 0 points in any thing at all. Now I know 100% this is very incorrect. One thing that has been baffling me all night is the fact that the assessor was very aware of problems I was having because of my poor memory she was asking my wife to help which she did when needs be. She actually said that she was not going to ask me to do all the physical activities because it was obvious the pain it was causing. Anyway, I have re-read this decision makers comments on the letter and have seen that they don't actually say that they took the assessment into consideration when they made the decision, all they have said is that st the assessment you were observed to be dressed appropriately, managed to communicate with the assessor had good eye contact and managed your medication. The thing is that of course I was dressed appropriately, my wife helps me and the assessor was completely aware of this, I could communicate with the assessor on most things, apart from things I couldn't remember, which my wife helped out, this was because I was in my own home in the quiet without anyone or anything distracting me .
I have asked for my case to be looked at again, but the man at the DWP said when I went through the descriptors with him , when I said I can't prepare a meal without help his answer was " surely you can take a pie out of a packet and put it on a plate and then put it in the microwave " surely this is not what is meant to be a fresh meal?
I went on to tell him about washing and bathing and he said " so someone has to physically pick you up from the chair and carry you to the bathroom so you can wash " again I thought the fact that I needed help to wash and dry from my waist down and showering caused great fatigue, that I would be able to gain some help with this.
Any how if anyone can help with any answers I would be so very grateful as at the moment I feel utterly useless and the fact that I was not taken seriously is very upsetting. On the decision letter it said they used information about my illness and disability, medication (which I am on a massive amount which was pointed out by the assessor that no one is given that amount unless they need it ) and symptoms. I am positive that they did not look at the form from me GP purely because I know that my doctor filled the form in on the Monday afternoon and the decision was made on the Thursday of the same week
I will be more than grateful for any input.

Thank you so much I really am at my wits end but I will not give up I know I am entitled to this help

Thank you they really are playing with our lives do they think we enjoy relying on our children who have their own lives and families to look after, do they not realise how degrading this is. I will go as far as I can with this I am disgusted that the guy on the phone said to me that if you can open a pie put it on a plate in the microwave then you can cook a meal