Bias against tape recorded claimants

Hi

In a recent face to face assessment, the claimant insisted upon recording by Maximus. Prior to switching the recorder on, the assessor sought to dissuade the claimant from proceeding with recording by saying things such as that recording meant that the interview would be considerably longer as all the questions would have to be asked (cf. a limited selection). The claimant remained insistent. The claimant received notification of the award barely two weeks later and their ESA award was reduced. Is there a trend of of claimants being discriminated against on the basis of recording of the interviews?