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ESA50 immediately sent out following claim

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6 years 2 months ago #205281 by McDirk
Hi, I last received ESA for a short period a few years ago.

I've applied for it again as I had knee surgery recently and am not ready to return to work. My sick pay has stopped and I'm not entitled to SSP as my employer was abroad. However, I've immediately been sent an ESA50 form to complete with a letter stating 'we won't start paying you Employment and Support allowance until this form is filled out and sent in'.

Is this right? I've sent in my fit note and P45. As far as I knew there was usually an assessment period where they start paying you ESA and you aren't sent the ESA50 form straight away and told they won't pay you until you've completed it.

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6 years 2 months ago #205296 by Gordon
Replied by Gordon on topic ESA50 immediately sent out following claim
M

Welcome to the forum, you might want to have a look at the following FAQ which explain where everything is

Welcome to Benefits and Work

In case you are not aware, your real name appears to be showing in the forum, if you want to change this then follow the instructions in the following FAQ

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


How was your last ESA claim left?

If you were found Fit for Work then you can only make a new claim for ESA is you can show a new condition or a deterioration in your original ones, likely to result in an award. It is possible that the DWP are withholding payment of your ESA until you attend a face to face assessment.

Be aware ESA is not a walking test, it is a Mobility test! In addition to your walking it considers your ability to self-propel a manual wheelchair over the same distances, you do not need to be using a wheelchair or even to own one for it to be considered. SO even if you can show your walking is restricted, unless you can also show that you cannot self-propel the wheelchair you will still not score points.

Are you sure the form is an ESA50 and not an ESA1.

Gordon

Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems

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6 years 2 months ago #205306 by McDirk
Replied by McDirk on topic ESA50 immediately sent out following claim
Hi,

Thanks for the quick reply. It's a pseudonym, not my real name. Re: my last claim, it was about 7 years ago for something unrelated. I recovered and returned to work, notifying them I did not need ESA anymore. The claim now is for an entirely new condition.

The form is definitely an ESA50; it's entitled 'Capability for Work questionnaire' with the code ESA50 at the bottom. I've already completed my ESA1 over the phone and sent the evidence they asked for.

And yes, I'm unfortunately aware of the wheelchair issue and know I'm unlikely to qualify based on a WCA as I could technically self-propel a wheelchair. I still have to rest for most of the day in between physio and can't sit for more than a few minutes without pain which makes working pretty out of the question right now. And yes I know the assessor would not see it that way.

I just didn't realise initial payments of ESA were now being withheld until a WCA is attended, apparently this is happening now. So I don't know if it's even worth returning the form?

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6 years 2 months ago #205317 by Gordon
Replied by Gordon on topic ESA50 immediately sent out following claim
McDirk

The only reason I am aware for withholding payment during the Assessment phase would be your having a Fit for Work Decision on your last claim, but you closed it so this does not apply.

I would contact the DWP for an explanation of why they at not paying you and specifically what Regulations this falls under.

Gordon

Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
The following user(s) said Thank You: McDirk

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6 years 1 month ago #205506 by McDirk
Replied by McDirk on topic ESA50 immediately sent out following claim
Thanks for advice. I hadn't yet contacted the DWP about it when I received a letter stating my ESA claim has been denied due to not enough NI contributions for the 2015-16 and 2016-17 tax years. This is laughable as I was in full-time work as a PAYE employee for both those years. HMRC data on me is up-to-date, correct and indicates full contributions for both those years. I have the P60s to prove it.

I apparently now have to ask for a Mandatory Reconsideration, but it was still recommended I send the fit note and most recent P45 in. So I've done this but now will have to send a letter to the decision maker along with my copies of my P60s?

But I'm not sure how the ESA50 fits into this as it hasn't been mentioned to me apart from a return date of 26th February. I wonder if this still applies if I've been denied for now?

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6 years 1 month ago #205525 by Gordon
Replied by Gordon on topic ESA50 immediately sent out following claim

McDirk wrote: But I'm not sure how the ESA50 fits into this as it hasn't been mentioned to me apart from a return date of 26th February. I wonder if this still applies if I've been denied for now?


You can continue with the claim, without payment, and if you meet the criteria you can receive NI Credits which count towards a full State Pension, so I would complete and return the form, failing to do so will itself prevent payment of your ESA.

Hopefully your P60s will enable payments to be made.

Gordon

Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems

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